The founders of toy store chain The Entertainer are set to transfer their ownership to an Employee Ownership Trust (EOT) next month to secure the future of the business.
Gary and Catherine Grant said the move will ensure the retailer, which also owns Early Learning Centre, will remain independent and preserve both the family’s legacy and the family feel of the company.
As part of the EOT, The Entertainer’s employees will become beneficiaries of the Trust and will be rewarded through tax-free bonuses based on the amount of profit the business generates.
They will appoint a Colleague Advisory Board, which will be responsible for helping to shape policies, share employee sentiment and ideas, as well as have a representative that will sit on the three person Trust Board.
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The Entertainer co-founder and executive chairman Gary Grant said: “Today marks a momentous day for the Grant family. It feels like only yesterday that my wife Catherine and I opened our first store in Amersham, and we could only have dreamed what heights the business would reach.
“Over the last 44 years, we have invested our working lives into this business. All our children are shareholders, and our two oldest sons joined to work alongside us, 20 years ago, so it’s truly a family business.”
He added: “This is a significant decision for the family, and one we haven’t taken lightly, but it feels like the right time to transfer our entire shareholding into an Employee Ownership Trust.”
The Entertainer trades from over 160 stores across the UK and through over 1000 concessions with the likes of Tesco, Matalan and M&S.
Chief executive Andrew Murphy said: “What the Grant family have built is a true British success story, all the more impressive for having consistently championed the belief that business can be a force for good across the communities they serve.”
“I know that our new structure will bring us even closer as a business and will provide our hard-working employees with a sense of opportunity, accountability and belonging as we work to create more memories, inspire wonder and deliver outstanding customer service. I am hugely excited for what lies ahead,” he added.
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