Soho-based executive support recruiter Bain and Gray has announced its transition to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) creating a springboard for future growth through staff stewardship of the business. The new status complements the organisation’s collaborative way of working and builds on the company culture of trust and inclusion. The EOT gives Bain and Gray’s twenty-strong employees a stake in the business, affording them a greater say in how the company is run, and entitling them to an annual share of profits.
Founded in 2009 by Emily Bain and Claire Gray, the company has enjoyed 15 years of continuous growth, and as a newly fledged EOT is set to continue at the top of its game. The company’s reputation in the London recruitment sector for sourcing outstanding executive support talent and ensuring the right cultural fit is second to none. Emily Bain remains as managing director, and Claire Gray as finance director, ensuring continuity of service for the HNWI, city institutions and corporate clients.
Commenting on the EOT, managing director, Emily Bain says: “Choosing to create an EOT was a no-brainer: as co-founders we continue our active involvement in the company, while ensuring staff help steer our present and future. In doing so, we are creating a seamless strategy for succession”.
She continues: “With a reputation for staff retention and longevity, and despite other approaches for the business, we felt that passing on the company to our team was exactly the right thing to do. We are securing the future stability of Bain and Gray in the hands of a highly competent team.”
Alice Stevenson, who has been with the company for eight years and risen from office manager to managing consultant, says: “It is such an exciting time for the business, and for me personally. The EOT effectively gives us shares in a company I love and a say in how it is run, which is both motivating and rewarding. We all work hard, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for our tight-knit organisation.”
The EOT underlines Bain and Gray’s core values of trust, integrity, equity, accountability, and inclusion and is a platform for a sustainable culture based around teamwork.
James de le Vingne, chief executive of the Employee Ownership Association (EOA) says: “We congratulate Bain and Gray on its evolution to employee ownership, which will safeguard the company’s culture and values. Businesses that give employees a larger say create a common purpose, which leaves them in a better position to adapt and evolve.”