Greenwood Whiskey is a premium brand designed to celebrate a win.
Kweillin Gordon, Sheldon Johns-Harris, James Roach and Ché Bailey are the founders of Greenwood Whiskey. The Atlanta- based award-winning premium whiskey brand was inspired by the excellence that was embodied in Tulsa, Oklahoma’s Historic Greenwood District also known as ‘Black Wall Street.’ The celebration spirit is currently sold throughout Georgia, Oklahoma, Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, & South Carolina. Greenwood can also be purchased online in over 40 states and over 500 locations.
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How did guys go from having no experience in spirits to launching a premium liquor brand?
Sheldon Johns-Harris: We hang out a lot together. And then, KG is like, we should do something together. One day he said we’re gonna sell liquor, and we looked at him crazy, but we were also drinking. That next morning he called everybody like, ‘Yo, I was serious. Let’s get it done.’ So he kind of put the battery in everybody’s back to move forward.
KG you had an opportunity to blame this ambitious idea on the alcohol. You doubled down instead.
Kweillin Gordon: I hold people to drunk promises. It was an opportunity for us to do something together, to show that Black men can get together, work together, and be successful together. Greenwood Whiskey is what happened to be the product that we chose.
Working together under the radar is one thing, but when you chose to call the product Greenwood in honor of the Black Wall Street legacy, the expectations were high.
Ché Bailey: We’re examples. We’re entrepreneurs at heart, but we have a purpose behind what we do. We’re paying homage to those before us, and especially those coming behind us, right? This is for us. This is legacy.
Was it always a given that you were going to produce a premium brown liquor?
James Roach: We actually started off with a white whiskey. Everybody told us no, this is not going to sell for a new brand. You have no proof of concept. So we had to go back to the drawing board. Us having to pivot and figure something out, we came upon this.
Again, no previous background in spirits, but do any of you at least have food & beverage experience?
Ché Bailey: You got a finance guy, a real estate guy, logistics, and a lawyer. No alcohol experience among us, but just about every Black person that’s in spirits, we’ve been blessed enough for them to throw that rope over the fence and say, ‘Hey, we can help you do this, do that.’
James Roach: There’s a few brands that we know that we’ve reached out to and we kind of got the cold shoulder, but we had a gentleman who helped us out of Nashville named Jason Ridgel. He owns Guidance Whiskey. ‘Y ‘all don’t have a way to store your liquor? Just get it to me. Tell me when you want it back. Free of charge.’ Uncle Nearest has been a big supporter of us and the community too.
Being that Greenwood Whiskey is currently being sold retail in six states, and over 500 locations, people obviously are digging and acknowledging the product.
Sheldon Johns-Harris: We kind of feel like mini celebrities sometimes walking around. I show up somewhere and they’re like, “Hey, Mr. Greenwood.” I’m like, where did I meet you? We’re out so much, and the response is always great. We’ve had people that have helped us like that, and been supportive from the beginning. Once they see that this is a real thing, and we got traction, they’re like whatever you need, I got you.
