Bob Moore, the familiar face on the growing line of Bob’s Red Mill products, passed away at age 94. His death received national news coverage, including in the New York Times, USA Today, People, and many others. Moore sold the company to an ESOP in 2010, with the ESOP reaching 100% ownership in 2020. It has grown spectacularly since becoming ESOP-owned, with over 700 employees and over $100 million in sales from 200-plus products in over 70 countries. Many stores have Bob’s Red Mill sections. Along with equally iconic King Arthur Baking, the two 100% ESOP companies have become major players in their markets, with loyal customer bases.
In an interview with Fortune, Moore said executive greed was to blame for labor shortage issues and that an ESOP was the logical answer by making employees feel valued. "Businesspeople continually reach out to me, interested in buying my company, like they're doing me a great favor," Moore told Fortune. "They thought I was just a lame-brained idiot because I didn't want to sell my company. They told me how stupid I was, but you can't build what I've built and be really stupid."