Small, independent businesses are the backbone of our economy. Unfortunately, they’ve become harder to start and struggle to compete with large chains. We’ve been inspired by owner-owned cooperatives that help small businesses thrive.
“Research suggests that COVID-19 is accelerating the greatest wealth transfer in the history of retail, worsening the already unequal distribution of ownership in our society.”
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Taproot becomes Canada’s largest employee-owned trust with 750 workers | The Globe and Mail
On Sept. 2, 2025, B.C.-based Taproot community support services surprised its 750 employees with the news they will become equal owners of the company they helped build. Minister of Finance & National Revenue Francois-Philippe Champagne joined CEO Mike Fotheringham and Social Capital Partners Chair Jon Shell to celebrate the new worker-owners and Canada’s largest Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) to date. In the Globe and Mail, Meera Raman reports on Taproot's milestone and how this succession model keeps companies Canadian, keeps jobs in local communities and builds wealth for workers.