By Joshua Burd
An asphalt company based in southern New Jersey is now employee-owned after selling the majority of its stock to its workforce of more than 180.
American Asphalt Co. Inc., a manufacturer and contractor, announced recently that it had implemented an employee stock ownership program. The change was effective July 13 and ushers in a new era for the company, which is based in West Collingswood.
“The sale of American Asphalt Company to our employees will allow us to remain focused on our proven business plan, with no change in company culture or fear of a new owner changing how we do business,” said Robert Brown, the firm’s president, who noted that its 30-person management team will remain unchanged.
In a news release, American Asphalt said it has grown from four employees with revenues of less than $1 million per year in 1985 to a business with projected revenues of more than $50 million for this year. South Jersey Business magazine has cited it as one of the Best Places to Work in the region.
With the new employee stock ownership program, or ESOP, employees have beneficial ownership of company stock as part of their retirement plan. Employees will enjoy increasing stock value based on their own work ethic, hard work and the success of the company, the firm said.
American Asphalt operates three plants in South Jersey and is a full service paving contractor that builds and maintains parking lots, resurfaces roads and manufactures hot mix asphalt.
“The opportunity to live our Christian culture, sharing our blessings among all those people that have worked hard to make and keep us successful is the RIGHT thing to do,” Brown said, referring to an acronym associated with the firm’s core values: respect, integrity, God, honesty and trust. “Our company is made up of a majority of long-term employees who deliver quality products and an outstanding customer experience.”