A billionaire CEO has revealed why he's not leaving his company to family, but 'to God'.
David Green is the founder of Hobby Lobby - a chain of nearly 1,000 arts and crafts stores across 47 states of the US.
Following in a similar path to Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, who gave his fashion company away to a non-profit organisation, Green has decided he won't be giving away his company to family either.
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The 80-year-old son of a preacher has spoken out about why God is 'the true owner' of his business.
Hobby Lobby Stores - which first began in August 1972 in North Oklahoma City - came in at position 64 on America's largest private companies 2021, as per Forbes.
The company is also reported as making a revenue last year of a whopping $6.4 billion.
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As of today (22 October) Green and his family are said to be worth a combined net worth of $13.4 billion.
However, his family are going to have to make do with the wealth they have already, as Green has announced he is parting ways with Hobby Lobby and giving his company over to God, opposed to any of his relations.
In an article written for Fox News, the CEO revealed he had made his decision after questioning: "What is the true source of success?"
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Green states: "In the mid-1980s I went through a period where I’d grown proud thinking that I had the Midas touch – and I nearly lost the business. God had to show me that he was the one who granted success. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 8.18 that it’s God who gives us the power to make wealth."
While many business owners sell their companies and keep the profits for themselves and their families, Green explained how 'that idea began to bother [him] more and more'.
He admitted: "Well-meaning attorneys and accountants advised me to simply pass ownership down to my children and grandchildren. It didn’t seem fair to me that I might change or even ruin the future of grandchildren who had not even been born yet."
The CEO explained how as time passed, he realised 'all [his] success had come from God' and his and his wife's purpose with the business had always been to 'honour God'.
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Green resolved: "That bigger mission and purpose helped me realize that I was just a steward, a manager of what God had entrusted me. God was the true owner of my business.
"More importantly, I was responsible for the mission and purpose of what I’d been given. When I realized that I was just a steward, it was easy to give away my ownership.
"[...] Best of all, when I made the decision to give away my ownership, similar to Patagonia’s Yvon Chouinard, it allowed us to sustain our mission and purpose. It gives me a bigger purpose than just making money. Like Chouinard said, 'Instead of ‘going public,’ you could say we’re ‘going purpose'."
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Poppy Bilderbeck