In this special narrative episode of Ethical Exits, Hannah is joined by Matthew Epperson of the Georgia Center for Employee Ownership for a new kind of conversation.

Matt brings Hannah a real acquisition story she has never heard before, and together they unpack it in real time. The story follows the rise of True Value Hardware—from a cooperative built by independent retailers to compete against powerful wholesalers, through decades of growth, the arrival of big-box retail, a private equity acquisition, bankruptcy, and an unexpected ending that raises important questions about the future of business ownership.

Along the way, we explore:

• Why cooperative ownership helped independent businesses scale without giving up control

• The rise of Home Depot, Lowe's, Amazon, and changing competitive dynamics

• What happened when True Value accepted private equity investment

• Why Do it Best ultimately acquired the company

• The role of incentives, governance, and patient capital in long-term business resilience

• What founders, investors, and community leaders can learn from one of the most overlooked ownership stories in America