She Raised Over $230 Million To Build A Whiskey Brand That Honors The World’s First-Known African-American Master Distiller

Fawn Weaver’s journey from Pasadena to founding successful businesses has been anything but traditional. In this interview, she talks at length about an interesting concept–how to approach challenges by ignoring them.

Fawn also discusses her journey of building and raising funding for her company and her unique approach toward venture capital, private equity, and growing Uncle Nearest.

Listen to the full podcast episode and review the transcript here.

Early Years Growing Up in Pasadena

Born and raised near NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab, Fawn grew up in a world that most would see as extraordinary. Her father was a Motown hitmaker who later became a minister, filling their home with artists whose talent shaped American music.

Yet, Fawn didn’t view them as celebrities but as regular people navigating their struggles. This early exposure set the tone for her lifelong approach to authenticity, resilience, and fearlessly questioning norms. She demanded her teachers and parents explain things to make sense.

Redefining Success: Unimpressed by Fame

Fawn’s upbringing made her unimpressed by status and titles, which profoundly shaped her business philosophy. To her, a janitor deserves the same respect as a CEO.

This level of groundedness might seem surprising for someone surrounded by fame, but it shaped Fawn’s view that true success isn’t in celebrity but in character and achievement. By the time she was a teenager, Fawn’s independence was firmly set.

Fawn was curious, challenging everyone around her—parents, teachers, friends—and craving knowledge that went beyond fiction. She preferred facts and real stories, a preference that still defines her approach to business today.

Fawn remembers being uninterested in reading the novels on which she was asked to do book reports in school. Instead, she was more into non-fiction and the Encyclopedia Britannica set, which she read from A to Z.

A Journey Through Adversity

At 15, Fawn faced a life-altering ultimatum from her parents: follow their rules or move out. She chose independence, embarking on a path that included living in the projects, transitioning through multiple homeless shelters, and eventually joining Covenant House.

Here, Fawn discovered two truths: her work ethic was exceptional, and she could create opportunities where others saw limitations. On her first day, she returned with four job offers, realizing she had a talent not only for making things happen but also for thriving under pressure.

Fawn recalls how covenant houses trained her in frugality. All the residents’ money went into an escrow account until they had saved enough to rent an apartment, which at the time was $5,000. B.B. King’s Blues Club and Camacho’s Cantina were two of her first jobs.

Fawn’s resilience became a foundation for her career. As she transitioned into the workforce, she took on internships, including one with a high-profile publicist firm with big accounts like Lexus, Toyota, and AT&T. Here, she pitched and executed a groundbreaking idea.

Fawn wanted to bring the press to celebrities rather than vice versa, an early form of product placement. At the time, it was unusual to integrate products in the real world. Given the opportunity, Fawn pitched the idea to two clients, who loved it.

This initiative led to her opening her own PR firm at just 19. With storytelling as her core strategy, she set the foundation for a career built on vision, authenticity, and bold goals.

Storytelling as a Catalyst for Entrepreneurial Growth

To Fawn, storytelling isn’t just a business tactic; it’s a strategy for building and celebrating success. Instead of silently working toward goals, she advocates for setting ambitious milestones and publicly celebrating every win, however big or small.

“Move in silence” may be the prevailing wisdom in business, but Fawn’s approach is different. For her, sharing victories along the way allows for continual engagement with the story of growth, not only with her team but also with the public.

Each victory is a narrative pivot, an opportunity to showcase progress and inspire others to buy into the vision. This strategy isn’t about vanity but creating accountability and a cohesive narrative for the entire company.

Fawn’s storytelling aligns the team with the goals she sets out for each quarter. When these stories reach the media, they’re proof of real milestones achieved, turning brand-building into a transparent and credible journey.

Fawn explains that she interviews a few times a year without asking about the questions beforehand. She intentionally lets the interviews flow organically to come across as authentic, unique, and fresh, ensuring she is never repetitive.

Fawn reminisces about when Chef G. Garvin asked her to oversee the press and special event for their Beverly Hills restaurant, which they were opening in partnership with Keyshawn Johnson. Not having the bandwidth to take on the project, Fawn instead offered her expertise.

She ended up collaborating with Garvin, building the business plan, raising money, and executing the PR. The restaurant opening in Los Angeles became one of the most talked about events in the city. It has become an extremely popular fine-dining restaurant today.

Leadership and the Inescapable Entrepreneurial Spirit

Fawn’s attempt to find balance in her personal life led her into corporate America, where she hoped to manage less while enjoying more time with her husband. But the entrepreneur within her couldn’t be suppressed. She continued diving into the restaurant and bar business verticals.

Even as Fawn attempted to settle into a special events role at a hotel, her leadership qualities shone through, leading her to become a general manager. “Once an entrepreneur, always an entrepreneur,” she reflects.

The attempt to “take it easy” ultimately reinforced Fawn’s understanding that she’s built to lead. This realization was pivotal, guiding her to embrace entrepreneurship as her calling. She recalls wryly her attempts to “simply be the employee.” But ending up leading the business.

Finding Purpose in Marriage and Relationships

Fawn’s personal life also influenced her business mindset. Her first book, The Happy Wives Club, delves into the importance of mutual respect, daily rituals, and supportive communities in building lasting relationships.

Traveling across six continents and 12 countries, Fawn interviewed couples happily married for decades, seeking to understand the pillars and common denominators of strong relationships.

Fawn discovered that regardless of location, religion, or background, mutual respect, intentional rituals, and surrounding oneself with positive influences are not only keys to successful marriages but also translate into valuable principles for leadership and company culture.

The Birth of Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey

While traveling with her husband in Singapore, Fawn stumbled upon a photo of Jack Daniel with an African-American man by his side, supposedly taken circa 1904. Intrigued by this unusual depiction for the time, she delved into the story, uncovering a hidden history.

Fawn learned that Jack Daniel’s mentor was Nathan “Nearest” Green, an enslaved African-American distiller who had the idea of a hidden ingredient for the beverages.

This discovery sparked Fawn’s latest venture, Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey–a brand dedicated to preserving Green’s legacy and reflects Fawn’s commitment to rewriting narratives and bringing overlooked stories to light.

She realized that, in 40 years of living in America, no ubiquitous American brand that talked about African-American influences in its roots. Going back to her childhood, when she devoured encyclopedias, Fawn was ready to dive down the veritable rabbit hole.

By founding Uncle Nearest, Fawn honored a historical figure and also demonstrated the power of purpose-driven entrepreneurship. Today, the company is one of the most celebrated whiskey brands globally, a testament to her tenacity, vision, and dedication to elevating untold stories.

The Inspiration Behind Uncle Nearest

Talking about the inspiration behind Uncle Nearest, Fawn reveals that the brand is unlike others, which begins with the actual product. Then, they back themselves into a brand story and hire an outside marketing and branding firm to craft the story to talk about this product.

Before starting Uncle Nearest in 2016, Fawn spent time at Lynchburg meeting one of Jack’s eldest and one of Nearest’s descendants. After understanding and interviewing them, she began exploring avenues to tell the story to the world. The best option was a bottle with Green on it.

The next steps evolved quickly. Fawn created the bottle and then released a book. Within 12 weeks, the book was on the New York Times bestseller list for business and five weeks on the New York Times bestseller list for nonfiction. It remains a bestseller.

People gravitated to the brand not just because of its story of building it but also because of the legacy of Nearest Green and Jack Daniel. In 2017, the brand was in the market, and Fawn opened the first phase of the distillery across a 270-acre property. It has now expanded to 543 acres.

Fawn reveals how they initially purchased the original property on which Nearest first made the whiskey. She was convinced she had to start on this 313-acre property because that’s where the story began.

Fawn explains that most bourbon and whiskey companies tend not to buy a distillery because of the significant investment involved. But her goal was to build something that would continue for generations to come and would still grow 200 years down the line.

Marketing Uncle Nearest

Fawn was mindful that no person of color had ever succeeded in this industry. She realized that 70% of Americans, including women and people of color, have the highest spending power than minority groups. But, they are more inclined to purchase products from similar demographics.

Fawn realized that they would need to market to customers via second-tier middlemen and distributors. However, since historically, distributors from top to bottom are white males, stories get lost between the manufacturers and buyers. She wanted to connect directly with her buyers.

Fawn wanted to circumvent the system legally but reach customers directly. Her solution was to set up a tiny distillery in Tennessee with a small investment of $50M and attract customers to come see it.

It quickly became the seventh most visited distillery in the world, with around 230,000 people visiting each year. These people would go out and share the story of Nearest Green when pouring Uncle Nearest and introduce it in their favorite restaurants and bars.

Raising Funding for Uncle Nearest

Raising capital for Uncle Nearest has been an equally unique experience. Despite initially being turned down by institutional investors and venture capitalists, Fawn remained undeterred. To date, she’s raised over $230M, primarily through debt rather than equity.

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This capital has allowed Fawn to maintain control and retain the majority share in the company. Her first round of funding came from a small, close-knit group of investors—five Jewish men and one Asian woman.

Fawn’s initial investors believed in her vision and were willing to take on the substantial risks involved. Given that she was entering a competitive spirits industry dominated by large conglomerates, these early investors had to stomach the uncertainties.

The most significant risks included potential trademark challenges, distributor roadblocks, and other barriers to the product reaching store shelves. By the time Uncle Nearest reached its Series A funding, the brand was firmly established in the market.

Fawn leveraged her background in earned media, which kept the brand in the public eye. For this round, she brought in individual investors whom she engaged with directly, opting to bypass the traditional approach of presenting to venture capital firms with multiple junior analysts.

This personal approach to fundraising has defined her cap table, even with SPVs involved—she knows each individual contributor.

Fawn’s Future Vision for Uncle Nearest

Fawn’s grand vision for Uncle Nearest extends far beyond a single brand. She envisions a portfolio of spirits businesses operating in multiple sectors of the alcohol industry and spanning at least 100 countries.

This ambitious goal is fueled by a commitment to storytelling and a strong sense of purpose that resonates with Fawn’s investors, employees, and the hundreds of thousands of visitors to her distillery.

Yet, alongside her relentless work ethic, Fawn prioritizes balance, especially when it comes to family and rest. For nearly 30 years, she has strictly observed the Sabbath, typically on Sundays, a day dedicated to true rest with no work.

Fawn’s husband humorously calls her an “Orthodox Jew on the Sabbath,” recognizing her complete commitment to rest on that day. During busy seasons, she and her husband may work six days a week, 16 hours a day, but on that seventh day, they pause.

This intentional rhythm of work and rest enables her to accomplish more in six days than most people manage in seven.

Retrospection and Advice to Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Fawn’s advice to entrepreneurs is to embrace challenges, not by focusing on them but by ignoring distractions and staying centered on goals. She strongly believes that failure doesn’t exist unless you give up. Your superpower is “to double down on what you do and don’t give up.”

Fawn’s approach to leadership, storytelling, and life inspires and reminds us that success is about more than milestones—it’s about staying true to yourself and building an impactful legacy.

Fawn loves to share her experiences and expertise in real-time with anyone who approaches her, even if that means creating competition, which inspires her to work harder, better, and smarter to stay ahead.

In Conclusion

Fawn Weaver’s journey with Uncle Nearest has been nothing short of extraordinary. Her resilience, personal approach to business, and unwavering dedication to her vision and family serve as powerful blueprints for success.

Her story demonstrates that great companies are built not just on innovation and hard work, but also on the courage to forge a unique path.

Listen to the full podcast episode to know more, including:

• Fawn Weaver’s resilience and entrepreneurial journey are rooted in overcoming challenges, from early independence to thriving under adversity.
• Her storytelling approach amplifies milestones, aligning team and public support with her company’s vision.
• Fawn’s leadership philosophy values character over status, emphasizing mutual respect in business and relationships.
• Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey was born from a purpose-driven mission to honor untold histories and redefine the spirits industry.
• Fawn’s innovative fundraising strategies, focusing on debt over equity, allowed her to retain control while raising over $230M.
• Marketing ingenuity, including a visitor-centric distillery model, established Uncle Nearest as a globally celebrated whiskey brand.
• Fawn’s advice to entrepreneurs: Ignore distractions, double down on strengths, and embrace competition to fuel continuous improvement.

 

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