Haviland Celebrates 10 Years of Complete Employee Ownership

Haviland Enterprises Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of specialty and commodity chemistry, attributes its success to being an employee-owned, Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) company. Haviland is celebrating 10 years of being 100% employee owned in 2022.

“Haviland’s success is a reflection of our ESOP culture,” says Meg Post, Haviland president and CEO. “Our employees take immense pride in their jobs and work extremely hard to create value for our customers, employee-owners and communities.”

Haviland Enterprises Inc., the holding company for Haviland Products Co., Haviland Pool and Spa and Baleco International, is also on track to reach the milestone of $200 million in sales in 2022.

“Our team’s commitment to providing customers with creative chemistry solutions has allowed us to thrive in a difficult operating environment, leveraging our chemical manufacturing and formulation capabilities to launch new products and service new markets,” Post says.

Currently, Haviland employees average nine years of service, which many attribute to the ESOP.

An ESOP is an employee retirement benefit plan that enables companies to give a portion or all of its stock to employees through a trust. The company repurchases shares following employment, enabling employees to accumulate wealth based on the company’s growth and success.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to build long-term, equitable wealth for all of our employees,” Post says. “I attribute our success to the dedication of our team who think and act like owners and are continually finding ways to drive growth through investment and continuous improvement.”

Founded by J.B. Haviland in 1934, Haviland became a became a partial ESOP in 1997 with 54% of the company owned by the Haviland family and 46% owned by employees. The family sold its remaining shares to the ESOP in 2012.