Business View Magazine - May 2024

This acquisition helped H&C greatly expand its offerings, resulting in a solid foundation for the company. In the second half of the 2000’s Cowgill had begun planning for retirement, and with a desire to see the family legacy continue, the company was sold to an ESOP at the start of 2011, a transition that marked a pivotal point in the company’s journey. H&C’s ESOP success is clearly due to the quality of the team that guided their transition. Attorney Rob Brown, valuation firm Empire Valuation Consultants, and third party administrators Principal all played key roles in launching H&C’s ESOP. Professional societies such as the National Center for Employee Ownership (NCEO) and The ESOP Association provided essential information and support. 99 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 11, ISSUE 05 H&C TOOL SUPPLY CORP.