Uncle Waithley ' s Vincy Brew Founder Karl Franz Williams .

Perhaps the most well-known example is Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey . Its branding references the nickname of Nathan Green , a trailblazing distiller who was born

BY KYLE SWARTZ into slavery and then freed after the Civil War . In the late 19th century , Green became the first African American master distiller on record in the U . S . while working at a preacher ’ s distillery near Lynchburg , TN . Here , he mentored a young Jack Daniel , including lessons on the charcoal-filtering process — a specialty of Green ’ s .

Green would later work for Daniel . Ultimately , seven generations of Uncle Nearest ’ s descendants have been employed by the Jack Daniel Distillery . Despite this legacy , Green ’ s story was not common knowledge outside of Lynchburg .

In 2016 this changed when The New York Times published an article that explored Green ’ s history . Brown-Forman followed by officially recognizing Uncle Nearest as the company ’ s first master distiller . Tours at the Jack Daniels Visitors Center now include a large exhibit about this American whiskey pioneer .

This overdue recognition continued in 2017 when entrepreneur , historian and author Fawn Weaver launched the whiskey brand Uncle Nearest . In a moment of progress on multiple fronts , Weaver became the first Black woman running a major spirits brand , while her company was the first American spirits brand with an all-female executive team .

Not content with her own success , Weaver helped launch the company ’ s Black Business Booster program , the Nearest and Jack Advancement Initiative and Uncle Nearest Ventures . These provide funding for Green ' s descendants to attend college , and investment for minority entrepreneurs and their businesses .

It ' s all part of an ecosystem that has recently emerged in the industry , supporting those who follow in the footsteps of success stories like Weaver .

BLACK-OWNED BRANDS How can BIPOC- ( Black , Indigenous , People of Color ) and Black-owned brands help each other while benefiting the industry as a whole ?

Uncle Waithley ' s Vincy Brew is a Harlem-based , nonalcoholic , all-natural ginger beer with an all-Black leadership team : Founder Karl Franz Williams , VP of Organi-

Monica Freeman

Uncle Waithley ' s Vincy Brew Director of Marketing and Culture Michael McConnell .

zational Strategy , Monica Freeman-Greene , and Director of Marketing and Culture , Michael McConnell .

“ Supporting Black-owned brands makes good business sense ,” says Williams . “ There ’ s a plethora of products in the store ; if they all look the same , there ’ s less to choose from . And the Black consumer has huge buying power and income . And , of course , there ’ s the equity standpoint , as well .” Agreeing with him is Eddie Simeón , Co-Founder and CMO of Hella Cocktail Co ., a brand of botanically inspired mixers and beverages .

“ Put simply , it ' s good for business . In a recent survey ( MFour August 2023 ), 52 % of consumers indicated that certified MBE [ Minority Business Enterprise ] status would

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