An Aberaeron-based social and economic research company is now owned by its employees.
Wavehill, which was established in 1992 and also has offices Bristol, Newcastle and London, has moved to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) model with the support of Social Business Wales, via its Employee Ownership Wales service, which offers fully-funded guidance and support on employee ownership and share schemes to Welsh businesses.
The employees now have a majority (54%) ownership stake in the business. The value of deal, which sees founder and director of Wavehill Mark Willis becoming a minority shareholder, has not been disclosed.
While depending on future trading performance 25 employees in the EOP will be able to benefit from an annual tax free bonus of up to £3,600 a year.
Mr Willis, said: “We have clear company values, an extremely strong ethic and a culture based on collaboration and respect, so when it came to continuity and succession planning, becoming employee owned was a natural progression for Wavehill.
“For us, it’s a commitment to our team, a number of whom have been with us for many years and have been instrumental to our success. We want to empower them; share in the success that we’ve built and make our employees feel invested in our continued growth.”
The employee ownership Wales team at Social Business Wales, which is run by the Wales Co-operative Centre and funded by the EU and Welsh Government, has advised over 50 companies in Wales on ownership transition including the likes of Tregroes Waffles and independent TV production company, Cwmni Da.
Paul Cantrill, from the employee ownership Wales team, said: “Mark’s route was a natural progression of the company ethos and has become a true win/win transaction for all parties involved, and we thank him for trusting us to help manage the process.
"Many companies in Wales are recognising that the employee ownership the model is a smart choice for them, particularly if they have been grown from seed, have a sense of responsibility towards their employees, and want to support and to retain local jobs.
Wavehill were further supported throughout the transition by Acuity Law and by BPU Chartered Accountants.
Natalie Jones and Steve Berry from Acuity Law advised on the legal aspects of the project.
On the new ownership structure Mr Berry said: “It accords well with the economic and political back-drop for businesses like Wavehill where people are the key asset. Wavehill is a great example of a business that has grown on talent and has succeeded by taking a long-term strategic view to its development. The new EOT structure is a powerful model and one that will give Wavehill employees a sense of achievement as well as a financial stake in the company’s future success.”
Huw Palin and Martin Knight of BPU chartered Accountants assisted the team at Wavehill with advice on the valuation of the company and the various taxation issues to consider when an employee owned trust.
Mr Palin said: “We are seeing increasing interest from our clients in the EOT model as an effective means of business succession, and we believe that with the support of Social Business Wales and its employee ownership Wales team we will see many more successful examples of them in the future.
"An EOT works particularly well where there is a combination of both forward looking management and highly motivated employees as is the case at Wavehill.”
