Independent Agency Mower Becomes Employee Owned

SYRACUSE, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 10, 2022 / Mower, one of the leading independent marketing communications agencies in the U.S., today announced that Chairman and CEO Eric Mower has transferred 100% ownership of the company to employees via an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). Mr. Mower, who began his career at the agency in 1968, will remain in his current position as will other senior Mower executives.

The news was shared with Mower employees at special gatherings hosted in Syracuse, NY, the city in which the agency began, and Greenville, SC, a central location for employees from the agency's Charlotte and Atlanta hubs. Employees traveled from a total of 12 cities around the country to learn about the future of Mower and their pivotal role as new employee owners.

The ESOP will benefit employees for their contributions to the success of Mower, making about 150 employees new "employee owners" of the agency at no cost to them, with equity in the business and an additional retirement benefit. It also provides the agency a smooth ownership transition into the years to come with a continuation of strong leadership by Mower's executive team, including President and Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Crockett; Vice Chairman - Chief Brand Officer Doug Bean; Chief Administrative Officer Chris Steenstra; Chief Financial Officer Cheryl Duggan; Chief Creative Officer Doug Kamp; and Executive Vice President, Managing Director, Public Relations and Public Affairs Rick Lyke.

Eric Mower commented, "The ESOP allows Mower to remain independent, to maintain our professional standards and practices and for our employees to know that their future is in their hands. The ideas and energy of this committed team of next generation employee owners, all dedicated to collaboration, creativity and problem solving, will prove a powerful force for growth, as well as a powerful tool to attract and retain talent. I look forward to seeing our new employee owners maintain their fierce friendships while doing great work that supports the success of our clients."

Added Stephanie Crockett, "The ESOP will have meaningful benefits to our business, positively impacting our clients as well. We know talented advertising, marketing and public relations professionals are attracted to the idea of employee ownership, and the model is shown to inspire longer tenures for executives. Just as many of us at Mower have made this business a home for our careers - I'm celebrating 18 years - we want to inspire others to invest their time and talent into the agency, and reap the rewards for that investment, too."

Mower is a digitally integrated marketing, advertising and public relations company, recently named Association of National Advertisers' B2B Midsize Agency of the Year. Mower is also a three-time winner of the Ad Age Best Places to Work and five-time winner of the PR News Top Places to Work awards. Clients span both B2B and B2C, with specialties in a variety of industries like energy and sustainability, healthcare, technology, travel and tourism, financial services, building and construction, and cars and trucks. Companies like National Grid, FirstEnergy, 84.51°, FedEx, ABB, Prysmian Group, Northwest Bank, Turning Stone Resort Casino, Pebble Beach Resorts and Ford Dealers are among Mower's clients. The company's employee owners are based across the U.S., including New York City, Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Miami, Charlotte, Cincinnati, and four major cities within New York State, Buffalo, Albany, Rochester and Syracuse.