Longtime Keene company Whitney Brothers Educational Furniture for Children was recently acquired by Empowered Ventures, an Indiana-based employee-owned acquisition holding company. Whitney Bros., at 93 Railroad St., will remain locally operated, according to its President Mike Jablonski. (James Rinker/Sentinel Staff)


Longtime Keene company Whitney Brothers Educational Furniture for Children has been acquired by Empowered Ventures, an Indiana-based employee-owned acquisition holding company.

The purchase was finalized on Jan. 17 andannounced via news release Friday. Whitney Bros. President Mike Jablonski said Monday morning the company will remain locally operated at 93 Railroad St. in Keene. Its employees will become part of an employee stock ownership plan, also known as an ESOP.

"All the good things we've been doing will continue, and we remain an independent operating company," he said. "... Empowered Ventures doesn't operate the companies they buy; they're really hands-off. It's merely allowing us to operate successfully in the future, while providing stability for our employees."

The Keene manufacturer has around 50 employees, and there are no planned staffing changes, according to Jablonski, who said he'll stay on as company president. He declined to share the sale price.

Founded in Marlborough in 1904 as a producer of wooden toys, Whitney Bros. soon shifted to commercial distribution, ultimately focusing on the early learning and institutional child care markets. Today, Whitney Bros. sells wooden furniture and educational products, such as blocks and sensory tables, for day cares, preschools and classrooms worldwide.

The acquisition, Jablonski said, provides additional benefits to its employees. Under Empowered Ventures' business model, a privately owned business sells to Empowered Ventures, and the seller receives all or most of the purchase price in cash at closing. The business becomes a subsidiary of Empowered Ventures, which is wholly owned by the Empowered Ventures ESOP Trust, according to Jablonski.

From there, an annual retirement benefit contribution to the trust is made on behalf of each employee, funded by the operating companies’ profits. The contribution is converted to shares of Empowered Ventures within each employee’s account.

Accounts accrue value inside the trust, he said, with the share price revalued annually by an accredited valuation firm. The trust repurchases vested shares from employees when they exit the company.

"In Empowered Ventures, we found a partner that deeply values both our employees and Whitney Brothers’ rich 120-year history," Jablonski said in the release. "Their commitment to honoring our legacy while investing in our people gives me great confidence in the future of the company."

Empowered Ventures, headquartered in Carmel, Ind., was founded in 2020 by Top Value Fabrics (TVF). President and CEO Chris Fredericks proposed and led the transition of TVF to an employee stock ownership plan in 2010. He said in the release he's excited to welcome Whitney Bros. to Empowered Ventures' portfolio.

“As an employee-owned holding company, we help business owners by providing a relatively easy buyout process that results in the employees joining our diversified ESOP," Fredericks said in the release. "We are incredibly grateful to Mike for entrusting us with Whitney Brothers’ future and are excited to partner with him and his team going forward.”

Empowered Ventures is not a fund, has no outside investors and uses its own capital to fund acquisitions, according to the release. The holding company owns four other companies, including Benoure, a mechanical contractor based in South Burlington, Vt.

"The operating companies Empowered Ventures owns is diverse, Jablonski said. "They have a lot of diversity in their stocks, and if one has a bad year they can lean on the others. .. There's a lot of advantages for our employees in this model."

James Rinker can be reached at 603-355-8569, or jrinker@keenesentinel.com.

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