A yellow building with colorful polka dots houses Crystal Coin Laundry. A blue sign is prominent, and an OPEN sign marks the door. Leafless trees and power lines are seen in the background, giving a bright setting perfect for reading up on employee ownership trusts FAQs.

Ontario wakes up to the succession tsunami

In November, 2025, the Ontario provincial government finally stepped into the looming “succession tsunami,” launching a modest $1.9M Business Succession Planning Hub to help micro-business owners plan exits through local Small Business Enterprise Centres. Notably, the hub spotlights employee ownership and the new Employee Ownership Trust, signaling a shift toward mainstream adoption. But, as Dan Skilleter writes, Ontario’s approach focuses narrowly on retiring owners, ignoring how different buyers shape risks and benefits to workers, communities and Canada's broader economic sovereignty. This is a promising start that could and should grow into a broader succession-planning policy that protects Ontario’s long-term resilience.

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