This week, we welcome back Jason Wiener, founder of Jason Wiener PC, for an insightful episode on alternative ownership structures. Jason’s boutique law firm specializes in alternative ownership design, including co-ops, various forms of employee ownership, and non-extractive financing. He guides shared ownership-minded founders through the entire lifecycle:
- Starting: Jason champions "full spectrum ownership design," advising founders to prioritize their "why" and "what" (goals and desired outcomes) over a specific legal vehicle. He notes that starting as a traditional C-corp or LLC is not irreversible, but founders must understand trade-offs with venture funding. His firm offers a free, self-guided "Community Enterprise Legal Design Course" online for those committed to community-centric models and eschewing upfront venture capital.
- Growing: Jason emphasizes that success depends on human conduct, communication, and decision-making, not just legal documents, which serve as guardrails. Successful enterprises balance core values with clear business strategy and client focus.
- Financing: Given that alternative ownership models typically do not have traditional liquidity events, revenue-based financing (e.g., demand dividends, revenue sharing notes, self-redeeming preferred equity) has emerged as a popular mechanism, aligning investor repayment with the co-op's financial health. Resources like the Transform Finance directory and leveraging Program Related Investments (PRIs) and Mission Related Investments (MRIs) from foundations can provide capital.
- Exiting/Succession: This constitutes a significant portion of his firm's work, especially amidst the "silver tsunami" of retiring business owners. Jason stresses "succession readiness"—organizing books, tax returns, and creating a data room—as 97% of the work. The choice of conversion pathway is a technical assessment, not an ideological one.
Jason will lead a hands-on workshop at the Ownership Economy Summit 2025 in New York on October 7th, offering a deeper dive into making these critical assessments for business succession. You can find more resources, including his blog and the free course, at jrwiener.com. And you can get your ticket to see him speak right here: https://www.ownershipeconomy.com/registration
