During a thought-provoking conversation with Revolt TV CEO Detavio Samuels, award-winning entrepreneur and Uncle Nearest CEO Fawn Weaver challenged a widely held belief in startup culture: that equity is everything.
Her message to rising entrepreneurs? “Equity doesn’t matter. Voting power does.”
Weaver, known for building Uncle Nearest Premium Whiskey into one of the fastest-growing spirits brands in American history, shared the cautionary tales she’s witnessed in business—founders clinging to high equity stakes only to lose everything when financial pressures force them into bad deals.
“People don’t understand that it’s not the equity that matters. It’s the power. It’s the vote,” she said in the interview with Samuels, on The BlackPrint adding that she’s seen people keep 70% of their company yet lose control after taking unfavorable funding.
Weaver explained that control, not ownership percentage, determines a company’s direction.
She pointed to tech giants like Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, noting that each owns relatively small stakes in their companies but maintains significant control through voting rights.
“Zuckerberg did it brilliantly,” Weaver said. “He made sure there were two different voting classes… He literally, I don’t think Mark owns even 18% at this point, but he can’t be outvoted. That’s what matters.”
Her remarks come as more Black entrepreneurs and underrepresented founders consider fundraising options in an evolving business landscape.
Weaver added further that chasing equity preservation at the expense of long-term control can be a critical misstep.
“We let our businesses fail because we’re holding onto equity,” she warned. “If you’re successful, you can go back and buy as much as you want. What matters is—**don’t give up the vote.”
Weaver’s insights highlight a broader lesson for entrepreneurs in corporate governance and financial literacy.
