Venture Compass has expertise in an alternative to selling your business – Employee Stock Ownership Plans, or ESOPs. An ESOP is a form of employee benefit plan, similar in some ways to a profit sharing plan. While there are many ways to establish an ESOP, the ESOP structure in which our clients are most commonly interested is setting up a trust fund which borrows money from a lender to purchase the stock of the client’s company. The company owner has the option to remain involved in the management of the company or to exit the company. ESOPs are particularly attractive to our clients because they are very tax advantaged entities. First, the company’s contributions to the ESOP to repay the loan are largely tax deductible, enabling a very beneficial financial structure. Second, in many circumstances, the gain that our clients receive from selling their shares to the ESOP can be tax-deferred, sometimes indefinitely. While ESOPs are somewhat complex, Venture Compass can securely and efficiently work with you to determine if an ESOP is right for your company and guide you through the formation and financing of an ESOP.