Fame Opens the Bottle. It Doesn't Refill It.
Picture courtesy of Elite Business website
Why Casamigos is cutting prices while Teremana keeps expanding
The celebrity tequila gold rush is over. In fiscal 2026, Diageo's US tequila sales fell 21%, and Casamigos, George Clooney's $1 billion brand, dropped 28%. This month, Campari sold Cabo Wabo, the brand that started the whole trend. Big groups are no longer buying celebrity tequila. They are selling it.
But not every celebrity bottle is falling equally. Dwayne Johnson's Teremana also slipped in a weak US market, by about 9% in volume, against Casamigos' 14.8%. In the same year, it entered more than 20 new countries.
Same fame, different foundations
Price. Casamigos sits in the $70-plus premium tier, the first to suffer when consumers trade down. Teremana launched at $25–$40, the price band that drove most of tequila's growth.
Product story. Casamigos sold a lifestyle: Clooney and his friends sharing a drink. Teremana sells its own distillery in the Jalisco highlands. When the founder is out of the news, the agave still has something to say.
Ownership. Clooney sold Casamigos to Diageo in 2017. Teremana's founders still hold the majority, with distributor Mast-Jägermeister holding a minority stake. Its celebrity still has skin in the game.
Reach. Around 99% of tequila is drunk in the US. Casamigos is tied to that one market. Teremana is in 80+ markets and pushing through airport duty-free.
The real lesson
A celebrity gets a bottle onto the shelf. It does not get bought a second time. Celebrity drinks once commanded a 73% price premium at US bars, but that premium was paid for novelty, and novelty doesn't last. Much of the growth credited to star power was simply tequila's own boom.
Now, Casamigos is preparing price cuts to defend a premium it can no longer justify. Teremana, built on value, production and distribution, is taking a smaller hit.
Beyond the bottle
The same test applies to every talent-led brand in beauty, fashion and hospitality: if the celebrity stepped away tomorrow, what would customers still be buying?
Fame opens the bottle. Only the brand refills it.
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Sources: Diageo FY2026 results via Vinetur; Mast-Jägermeister 2025 results via Moodie Davitt Report; The Daily Pour; GTR Magazine; Union OnPrem Insights.
