Yolo Eco Clean Cooperative

Employee ownership stories Yolo Eco Clean Cooperative (YECC) YECC is a small, women-owned cleaning company based in Davis, California, that provides cleaning services for homes, offices and businesses throughout Yolo County. YECC is a worker-owned cooperative that started in 2016, where all worker-owners make decisions democratically. YECC focuses on employee well-being, clients’ health, and environmental […]

Mandela Grocery Cooperative

Mandela Grocery Cooperative is a small worker-owned cooperative grocery store in West Oakland, California, which opened in 2009. Unlike conventional supermarkets and grocery stores, Mandela is operated, centrally governed, and democratically controlled by its worker-owners. The coop serves as a hub for the West Oakland community, not only providing access to healthy food in what is otherwise a “food desert,” but also in serving as a hub for community connection, relationships and support.

Promotoras Activas SF

Promotoras Activas SF is a small worker-owned cooperative based in San Francisco, California. Founded in 2021, Protoras Activas conducts community outreach to Latino families living in San Francisco, using the promotoras model that emerged in Latin America in the 1950s. Promotoras Activas’ outreach focuses not only on increasing access to healthcare, but also on affordable housing, education and civic engagement. Promotoras received support from Project Equity for their worker coop transition.

MN Builders

MN Builders is a mid-sized, 100% employee-owned building firm with an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Based in Oakland and now also in Tahoe, California, the firm started its transition to EO in 2016 and became fully employee-owned in 2021. Combining a passion for craftsmanship with a proven, collaborative process, MN Builders is a relationship-driven firm that provides residential, commercial, and industrial building services, cabinet and millwork. MN Builders’ employee-owners have a vested interest in the company’s, and therefore the clients’ success.

Namaste Solar

Employee ownership stories Namaste Solar Namaste Solar is a mid-sized 100% employee-owned solar installation company based in Denver, Colorado. The company provides home solar, home electrification and commercial solar services. Namaste has been in existence for 20 years, and in 2011, it transitioned to a worker cooperative model, where all worker-owners participate in democratic decision-making […]

Apex Underground

Employee ownership stories Apex Underground Apex Underground is a mid-sized business that provides residential sewer repair and water line replacement for the Denver Metro Area in Colorado. For 37 years, Apex Plumbing was family-owned and operated. In May, 2022, when the owner retired, he transitioned Apex Plumbing into an employee-owned business to further provide quality […]