Jennifer Stukey, MSOM, LAc, Dipl. Ac.
Have you ever built something so deeply tied to your values that the idea of handing it off felt impossible? For more than 15 years, I ran a thriving acupuncture and integrative wellness center. I opened it on Nov.1, 2009, with the vision of helping healing arts practitioners build sustainable practices because I had watched so many struggle to make ends meet. But by 2023, I was running on empty.
I had not planned an exit strategy. Like many of us, I was too focused on treating patients, supporting my staff and managing the daily flow of clinic life. But burnout crept in, and I knew something had to change.
This is the story of how I navigated the often-overlooked world of selling an acupuncture clinic and how I ultimately transitioned mine into a worker-owned cooperative. My hope is that by sharing what I learned, I can help you start thinking about your future now, before burnout decides for you.
In January 2023, I reached out to a consultant to evaluate my business and help me begin the process of selling it myself. I was advised to avoid using a business broker, which is essentially a real-estate agent for businesses, because they are often not the best fit for smaller, values-driven practices like ours.
So, I became my own broker. While still running the clinic, I quietly approached potential buyers in my community. This juggling act was emotionally and logistically taxing. I had to keep the sale confidential to protect staff morale and patient trust, all while trying to find someone who would be a good fit for the clinic’s culture and vision.
At one point, I entered contract negotiations with a buyer who seemed like a great match. I spent several thousand dollars in legal fees and dedicated weeks to due diligence. Then, just like that, they walked away. There was no letter of intent and no earnest money. Just time and resources lost.
That was a hard lesson. Without a formal letter of intent and a financial commitment from the buyer, you are vulnerable to walking a long road for nothing.
After another potential buyer dropped out, I was introduced by a trusted colleague to a nonprofit organization in Baltimore called BRED, the Baltimore Roundtable for Economic Democracy. They help business owners transition their businesses to worker-owned cooperatives.
Like many in our field, I assumed my staff did not have the financial means or desire to take on ownership. But BRED offers a model in which a cooperative loan is secured without any one person being personally liable. Ownership becomes collective, democratic, and rooted in shared responsibility and profit.
I began working with BRED in October 2023. Over the following year, we collaborated to educate and prepare my staff for ownership. On Feb. 14, 2025, I officially handed the reins to a newly formed cooperative of five dedicated team members.
This was not just a sale. It was a values-aligned succession plan. It allowed me to step away without compromising the heart and integrity of the business. It empowered my colleagues to step into leadership roles and ensured continuity of care for our patients.
What I felt once I discovered this model was relief. A lightness. After months of uncertainty and disappointment, learning that a cooperative transition was possible gave me hope again. As an owner, I was not just the leader. I was a colleague to my staff, a name in the community and a trusted medical professional to my patients. Knowing they would be taken care of, that the business would continue with practitioners who would continue to carry out its mission, and that they would have a voice in shaping its future felt right in my heart.
This model is especially well-suited to acupuncture and integrative wellness centers. Many of us are both practitioners and business owners. We care deeply about our teams, who are often our colleagues, and about the communities we serve. We have poured our hearts, our training and often our finances into building something meaningful. Selling that kind of business is not the same as handing off a gas station or liquor store. These are heartfelt, community-centered practices that deserve transitions rooted in the same care and intentions that have been their foundation.
A worker-owned cooperative is a heart-centered, mutually beneficial path. It honors the years of effort and energy you have invested while also creating a future whereby your legacy continues, even without you at the helm.
If you are a clinic owner, even if you are not thinking of stepping away yet, I encourage you to begin imagining what your eventual transition might look like. Start thinking about your exit strategy before you hit burnout. Traditional brokers may not understand the unique value of what we build in this field. Even if your staff does not have the financial resources to purchase your clinic outright, models exist that can make it possible. And perhaps most importantly, your clinic’s mission, spirit and legacy can live on in the hands of people who helped build it with you.
I am grateful for the path I took. It allowed me to turn a moment of burnout into a turning point for everyone involved. And now, the clinic I once owned is the first integrative wellness center in the United States to be a worker-owned cooperative. I hope it is not the last.
