EO Stories to Smile About
Handpicked by EO Day 2025 sponsors, Brabners, these three case studies not only exemplify Great EO, but demonstrate what an EO Smile is all about. Click on the names below to read the full case studies.
DJS Research
Proud of our people and our decades of experience (set-up in 2001), DJS Research Ltd is a full service, employee owned market research company that conducts projects for organisations across the UK and internationally.
Operating within consumer and B2B markets, we work with a diverse range of clients across all sectors, from private and public companies to not-for-profit organisations. We currently have 80+ partners (employees) and a turnover of c£8M.
We became majority employee owned in 2021. Our company already shared many of the core principles of employee ownership, so moving from a family-owned business to an EO company felt like a natural progression for DJS Research.
Our dedicated staff have made DJS Research the dynamic agency it is today and employee ownership is ensuring the future of the company remains firmly in their hands. Becoming EO made a bold statement about the kind of company we are and will continue to be well into the future.
Approaching EO — Key Considerations
Before becoming employee owned there was a lot of research and preparation done by our Founder prior to the transition – two years’ worth!
Thorough research is required to ensure the transition is the right route for the founders/exiting shareholders and the company moving forwards.
The eoa is a great resource for this alongside talking to professionals such as accountants and solicitors who have experience of EOT transactions (like Brabners) and also companies who are already employee owned. It is very important to do this initial work in order to start the journey well.
Secondly, communication is key – employees should be informed of the transition well before it actually happens (but when you know it will happen / has been signed off).
They need time to absorb the information, have Q&A sessions, understand what it means and be comfortable and ready for the EO journey. By doing this you are getting off to a great start.
DJS Research’s Journey to Employee Ownership
As already mentioned, research is the first step — is employee ownership the right route?
Then comes the ‘black and white’, all of the legals and considerations that accountants and solicitors will help you with.
It’s really important that both parties (the exiting shareholders / founders and the new EOT Board) are involved at this stage. The transaction has to be right and fair for both.
It’s quite a process going through all the legals and associated paperwork, but we were in safe hands working with Brabners and our accountants. They carefully took us through all the documentation and tailored each to our own specific circumstances.
Next you apply to HMRC to get their clearance on the transaction.
Finally – when you know it’s possible and clearance has been given – communication to the whole company is so important. Give some time for this important stage.
Then it’s a case of both parties signing a lot of documents!
But this is just the beginning! We’re close to four years now being employee owned. We’re still learning, listening, changing and trying our very best to become a Great EO company and embracing everything that EO has to offer.
Life as an Employee Owned Business
The company has changed in so many ways. The structure of DJS Research has perhaps been one of the biggest. We now have two boards – the Operational Board and the new Trust Board.
It took a while for both to understand each other, the respective roles and remits but now we are working very well together.
Times have been tough recently in the market research industry and having the two Boards feeding in ideas and suggestions has really helped. We’re a stronger company for having both.
The other big and crucial change has been employee voice. We are now listening to our employees (partners) even more than previously and it is having real impact. Ideas and suggestions are of many now at DJS Research.
We obviously can’t implement everything (and when we can’t, we explain why) but lots of things have been put in place on the back of partner suggestions.
Perhaps one of the most notable has been the introduction of rotating Board members which was a suggestion from one of our partners.
From our most recent ‘MyDJS’ employee engagement survey, three quarters of our partners now feel we think and behave like true partners. So, we are well on the way to living and embracing the full benefits of employee-ownership.
Top Tips for Other Businesses Considering EO
- Do your research! Take your time – is employee ownership right for your business?
- Communicate! And keep communicating. Bring employees along with you.
- Be transparent. Don’t hide anything, including the finances.
- Educate. Teach employees about the other side of the coin — how a business runs, open up as to why decisions are made.
- Embrace ideas and suggestions. Your workforce is everything!
Granby
Granby is an SME, established in the 1950s, with a long history as a trusted fulfilment and logistics provider across private, public, and charitable sectors. Our core services include 3PL, contract packing, and promotional marketing.
Our purpose is to support each individual in our team as they deliver best-in-class fulfilment solutions for our clients, while respecting our communities, both locally and globally.
We are proud to deliver outstanding value to our clients, driven by our dedicated people, efficient processes, and innovative technology.
Our core values and behaviours are: be curious, be agile, be collaborative, be resilient, be respectful, be solution-focused, be supportive, and be safe.
We share the main strategic goal of putting our people before profit. Our team is made up of seventy-five employees, each playing a vital role.
Navigating Exit Following a Management Buyout
Jo Kimber, our Non-Executive Director, was the owner of Granby following a management buyout in 2013.
While looking at her own exit strategy from the business, Jo explored various options, but nothing felt quite right. It was only when Jo learned about employee ownership that it started to tick all the boxes for her, especially ensuring Granby's continued success without her as the owner.
Once Jo decided this was the best option and it was agreed by the board, we engaged Brabners to support us with the transaction on a legal and governance basis.
The support we received from Brabners was exceptional; their expertise, dedication, and professionalism were instrumental in ensuring the success of this process.
Their ability to clearly explain each step of the process and milestone to achieve, whilst providing strategic advice was invaluable, and ultimately, we believe this thorough process prevented any unexpected hurdles.
Benefits of Employee Ownership
The culture at Granby has always been supportive and engaged, but since becoming employee owned, engagement has increased, with more cross-departmental appreciation being the biggest example.
We've had significant changes to the leadership team as part of the transaction and Jo's exit strategy, with Caroline being promoted from Director of People and Finance to Managing Director in January 2024, supported by the leadership team in creating the future of Granby.
Further succession planning has taken place throughout the business, making us stronger as a team and less reliant on individuals.
Employee ownership emphasises our incredible team at Granby. We all share the common goal of supporting our clients while ensuring Granby's success.
We have been fortunate enough to pay two profit-related bonuses since becoming EO, and the reaction from our employees was incredible. This drives the team to be better, more productive, and ultimately profitable, enabling us to share the rewards.
Our clients appreciate that we are employee owned. People are at the heart of what we do; we wouldn't have a business without them. As a fulfilment and logistics provider, we acknowledge that people buy from people and our clients have seen the benefits from us being employee owned.
We've signed off on our next five-year plan, which includes growth, acquisitions, and continued succession planning.
We've invested in more training than ever before, with 83% of our team embarking on training last year. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with collaboration being a key theme.
Since becoming employee owned, we have been finalists in the Investors in People award for Learning and Development, as well as a Red Rose finalist for our commitment to skills, reflecting our commitment to succession planning and creating a lasting legacy.
Our advice to other businesses considering employee ownership: Ensure you are doing this for the right reasons – it needs to be for your employees and creating a lasting legacy.
Optimum RX Lens Specialists
Optimum RX Lens Specialists is a leading UK-based ophthalmic lens manufacturer with over seventy team members.
In April 2024, the business began a new chapter by becoming an employee ownership trust (EOT).
This landmark move secured business continuity and represented a strategic decision to protect the legacy of its founders, the skilled and valued individuals who work there, and to embed the company’s core values of professionalism, innovation, passion, and ownership into its future.
Honouring a Legacy — Paul Bailey & Mark Marland
The transition to employee ownership marks the result of a remarkable journey led by Paul Bailey and Mark Marland.
Beginning with Paul, then supported by Mark, the duo helped build Optimum RX into a respected name within the optical industry. Today they remain the only UK lab to provide surfacing, coating and glazing services all in-house.
Their leadership was defined by:
- Professionalism — creating a culture of reliability, ethical practice, and continuous improvement.
- Innovation — pushing the boundaries of what was possible in the ophthalmic world.
- Passion — inspiring a team to care deeply about the work they do and the impact it has on customers’ vision and lives.
- Ownership — fostering a sense of pride and responsibility across every level of the business.
By choosing EO as their succession plan, Paul and Mark ensured the preservation of their legacy, enabling it to grow and remain firmly rooted in the hands of the people who helped build it.
They were supported by their tax and finance advisors — eoa member Beever & Struthers — and specialist advisors Brabners, whose corporate law team advised on the establishment of an EOT and how to transition the company to an employee ownership model.
Paul now serves as Chair, while Mark continues to support the business as a consultant, ensuring continuity and mentorship during the transition.
A Shared Vision for the Future
Today, every member of the Optimum RX team with over six months service is a member of the company’s EOT and get to benefit from the company’s success.
The structure has created a renewed sense of shared purpose and vision, where contributions at every level truly matter.
Under the guidance of the new leadership team – headed up by Managing Director Andrew Evans – the company continues to expand its capabilities while staying true to its strong focus on the individuals who work there and the founding ethos.
Recognition and Impact
Employee ownership is already delivering results. In 2024, Optimum RX won ‘The Lens Award’ at the Optician Awards for its optiFORM complex lens range – a product line that showcases its boundary-pushing approach and expertise.
More importantly, employee engagement continues to be positive, with teams feeling empowered, valued, and excited about the future.
The newly appointed Employee Trustee Directors, along with the employee council, are making their mark and acting as a voice for the team, implementing changes continually to ensure everyone has that EO Smile and enjoys the time they spend at Optimum!
Optimum recently celebrated their first anniversary as an EOT with an event and presentation for the whole team showcasing the highlights of the year.
The Optimum Value awards were announced, with four highly deserving team members receiving awards and prizes based on the exemplary examples set by them in following the values of the business.
It’s important to ensure that everyone understands the meaning of being an EOT and the importance of their part in this — the Value awards, the celebration of the anniversary and the fluidity in communication is part of the way that Optimum ensure this.