Who Owns America’s Businesses? A Case for Employee Ownership
Tue. Dec 15, 6:30pm
Tom Tom Foundation, 100 W. South St
As we prepare for the 15th Annual Tom Tom Festival (April 21–25, 2027), themed NEXTGEN, this Tomorrow Talk asks a fundamental question: Who will own the future of American business?
When a business owner retires, what happens to the company—and the people who helped build it?
Over the next 15 years, over 3 million Baby Boomer business owners will prepare to sell or step aside. These businesses represent over $5 trillion of assets, and these decisions will determine who builds wealth, whether jobs stay local, and what happens to businesses that anchor communities like Charlottesville.
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One possibility deserves more attention: selling the business to its employees.
Employee ownership already has a substantial footprint in the US: roughly 6,300 U.S. companies have Employee Stock Ownership Plans, or ESOPs, with about 15 million participants. These plans allow employees to build an ownership stake through their retirement benefits, without having to buy shares out of their own pockets. For workers, that can turn years of work into meaningful retirement wealth. For founders, it can offer a way to preserve a company’s independence and reward the people who helped make it successful. For the business itself, the decision can dramatically increase employee retention, and be more profitable.
So why isn’t employee ownership more common? What makes a business a good candidate? And what needs to change for selling to employees to become a practical choice for more owners?
Charlottesville entrepreneur, investor, and educator Brendan Richardson is working on one piece of that puzzle. His latest venture, Liquidus Partners, helps business owners access money tied up in the seller financing often used in ESOP transactions—addressing a financial obstacle that can make an employee buyout harder to choose.
Join us for a conversation about the promise, practical challenges, and future of employee ownership. We’ll explore what it could mean for business owners considering their next chapter, workers building their futures, and communities hoping to keep thriving businesses rooted close to home.
Registration is required.
General Admission: $25
Tomorrow Society Members: $20
Students: $15
FACILITATORS
Brendan Richardson is General Partner & Co-Founder of Liquidus Partners. Brendan is a serial entrepreneur and a “recovering” VC investor. He has been directly involved with start-ups and high growth companies as a venture capitalist, board member, entrepreneur and limited partner for 30 years. His most recent endeavor is launching Liquidus Partners with his co-founder, legendary Impact Investor Geoff “Chester” Woolley. Liquidus is a private credit platform providing capital solutions to ESOP-owned companies.
Prior to Liquidus, Brendan was a co-founder and founding CEO of both Astraea and Everactive, two leading, venture backed technology start-ups with headquarters in Charlottesville Virginia and global operations. Prior to this, he was a Partner at Vision Capital, based in Silicon Valley, where he invested in ground-breaking semiconductor, software and wireless start-ups across Europe and the U.S. Brendan is also an adjunct professor who has been teaching popular courses in Entrepreneurial Finance and VC investing at the University of Virginia and the University of Michigan for more than 12 years. Currently he is a Board Member of Intelligent Growth Solutions, a vertical farming technology leader based in Edinburgh Scotland and an advisor to several Charlottesville based start-ups including SpringBok Analytics and College Contact. He holds a B.S. in Finance from the University of Virginia.
Paul Beyer is the founder of the Tom Tom Foundation and Tom Tom Festival, and in his role as executive director, is responsible for its strategic vision and community partnerships. Beyond Tom Tom, Paul works on a variety of gatherings and events ranging from festivals, dance parties, dinner series, meditations, men's groups, conferences, seminars, and concerts.
ABOUT THE SERIES
The Tomorrow Talks are a year-long series that picks up critical themes from our April Festival and continues the conversations to create impact in Charlottesville. Each session is facilitated with an emphasis on participation, connection, and new collaborations. Tomorrow Talks begin with a connection exercise or meditation, and proceed into a presentation and breakout activities. They aim to impart knowledge that is practical and relevant to people's lived experience; combining academic or theoretical insights, alongside pragmatic tools, and experiential and somatic learnings.
