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The views, experiences and opinions expressed in this video are those of Dion and Laura and reflect their personal journey through the employee ownership transition process. They are shared in their own words and do not represent the views of Valloop.
How a trade show conversation changed everything
The First Conversation
They went to sell. They stayed to listen.
Dion and Laura were at DTX Manchester doing what they always did, representing NG Security, pitching cyber security services, building relationships. They met Craig Council, Valloop's CTO, and expected a short conversation about IT risk. What followed was a conversation about the business they'd helped build, about what its future could look like, and about a path to ownership that neither of them had ever seriously considered possible.
Neither of them came from a business ownership background.
Dion and Laura didn't think of themselves as business owners. Ownership felt like something for other people, people with the right background, the right connections, the right kind of confidence.
What the process helped them see was that they already had everything that mattered. They knew the business. They knew the team. They knew the clients. The only thing missing was a clear path, and that's exactly what employee ownership provided.
They wanted to keep the company in the hands of those who helped build it.
NG Security's founding owner had built something worth protecting. The culture, the people, the way the business operated. He didn't want a trade sale to erase all of that. He wanted to hand it to the people who'd helped make it what it is.
For Dion and Laura, that mattered. The prospect of a third-party buyer possibly changing everything, restructuring, redundancies, a shift in culture, was part of what made the decision feel right. Employee ownership kept the business in the hands of the people who cared about it most.
The most exciting part of the journey was seeing the people's reactions.
When the news broke, the response from the people around them said everything. Employees were genuinely excited, not just supportive. Suppliers who had worked alongside NG Security for years were also pleased.
For Dion, watching that reaction unfold, seeing people root for them, wanting to be part of what came next, and wanting to watch them grow, was the part of the whole journey he loved the most.
Understanding employee ownership
What is Employee Ownership?
Employee Ownership is a structure that allows business owners to sell their company to their employees through a trust.
Is Employee Ownership only for large businesses?
No. Employee Ownership is designed for trading SMEs with as few as four employees, and is generally best suited to businesses with between 10 and 250 employees. Size is not a barrier.
Can a business complete an Employee Ownership transition in under a year?
Yes. With the right platform and a motivated team, Employee Ownership transitions can be completed in a matter of weeks / months.
How does the Valloop Employee Ownership process work?
Valloop's platform supports both business owners and senior employees through every stage of an employee ownership transition. The platform combines an AI-powered agent with tools and templates to make the process clear, efficient, and accessible.