How was your Memorial Day?
I tried to clean off my cast iron grill grate using my oven's self-cleaning cycle. Did you know that carbon monoxide can cause headaches and loss of judgment in concentrations as low as 200 parts per million? Because I do now.
Since it was Memorial Day last weekend in the United States, and there's nothing more American than a good ol' backyard Memorial Day barbecue, I thought we'd take a look at the 401(k) plan of Weber-Stephens Products, which has been producing the iconic Weber Kettle grill since 1952.
Recommended For You
I wish there were some thrilling scandal surrounding this plan, like assets being funneled to the powerful ketchup and mustard lobby, but there isn't: this is about as vanilla as 401(k)s get. But it's important to master the basics!
With 557 active participants, Weber's retirement plan is well above the 100-participant cutoff for "large" plans. This means they file a Schedule H for their financials rather than a Schedule I (just remember – H for Huge). The great thing about a Schedule H is that attached to it is an in-depth look at the plan itself. Some of the highlights:
- In-service withdrawals are allowed for participants over the age of 59.5.
- Participants are fully vested.
- Of the plan's 20 or so available funds, the one with the highest current value ($6.6 million) is the Fidelity Retirement Money Market Fund. I guess they're playing it safe, and it probably explains why they underperformed the S&P 500 by almost 7 percent in 2009.
- Separated participants still receiving benefits are entitled to a 12-pack of hot dogs every July 4.
I made that last one up, but if it were true it would probably be in here!
I can see from the Schedule C that Fidelity is functioning as the plan's recordkeeper, loan processor, transfer agency, etc. (for which they received $7,204 in fees). That means if you think you can do better, and get them their hotdogs, you should give them a call. You can get their phone number on FreeERISA (ask for Leonard – he's the plan admin). Leonard's e-mail address is… well, for that, you would need to upgrade.
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
