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Celebrity Business Moves Last Week: Tequila Deals, Canned Cocktails, Skincare Plays, and the Never-Ending Quest to Turn Fame Into Shelf Space

A roundup of last week’s celebrity business moves, including Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila deal, Robin Thicke’s canned espresso martini, James Corden’s nootropic mocktail brand, Nick Jonas with Schick, The Rock’s Papatui skincare push, and Kevin Hart’s tequila success.

Celebrities Were Busy Again, Because Apparently Being Famous Wasn’t Enough

Last week in celebrity business land, the famous people did what famous people now do between press tours, gym selfies, and mysterious Instagram captions: they launched, partnered, invested, expanded, and generally attempted to occupy more space in your shopping cart. Once upon a time, celebrity business meant a perfume bottle shaped like ambition and regret. Now it means tequila, canned espresso martinis, adaptogenic mocktails, sunscreen, razors, and hospitality ventures that sound glamorous until someone has to actually manage inventory. The big theme was clear: celebrities are no longer satisfied with appearing in ads. They want to own the thing being advertised, distribute the thing, sell the thing, and then probably appear in a documentary about how difficult it was to believe in the thing.



Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila Gets a Serious Distribution Boost

Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila made one of the biggest celebrity business moves of the week when Sazerac took an undisclosed minority stake in the brand and became its exclusive U.S. sales and distribution partner. In normal human language, this means 818 is no longer just relying on celebrity sparkle and attractive bottles to do the heavy lifting. It now has a major spirits company helping push it across the country. That matters because in the beverage business, distribution is where cute branding goes to either become a real company or quietly sit on a shelf next to seven other bottles with celebrity origin stories. For 818, this move suggests the brand is aiming for long-term staying power in the brutally crowded celebrity tequila category. Because yes, apparently tequila is now the official side hustle of fame.


Robin Thicke Launches Mimá, a Canned Espresso Martini With Main Character Energy

Robin Thicke entered the ready-to-drink cocktail space with Mimá, a canned espresso martini brand introduced at The Beverage Forum in Manhattan Beach. This is very on-trend because the espresso martini has somehow gone from “fancy after-dinner drink” to “personality trait in a coupe glass.” Mimá is entering a category that has been growing quickly as consumers look for bar-style cocktails without the bartending, shaking, measuring, or inevitable sticky countertop. The celebrity angle gives the brand instant attention, but the actual challenge will be taste, shelf placement, pricing, and whether people want their espresso martini experience to come with a pop-top. Still, as celebrity alcohol plays go, this one makes sense. It is stylish, convenient, and caffeinated enough to make poor decisions feel efficient.


James Corden Steps Into Functional Drinks With Noot

James Corden introduced Noot, a non-alcoholic canned cocktail built around nootropics, adaptogens, botanicals, and the general wellness vocabulary that makes beverages sound like they majored in psychology. Noot fits neatly into the growing “functional drink” category, where consumers want something more exciting than soda but less chaotic than alcohol. The pitch is not just “drink this,” but “drink this and perhaps become a calmer, more optimized version of yourself.” Whether that works is another matter, but the business logic is obvious. Non-alcoholic drinks are having a moment, celebrity-backed beverages attract attention, and wellness branding continues to be powerful even when half the words sound like they were invented during a yoga retreat with Wi-Fi. Corden’s move suggests celebrities are not just chasing booze anymore; they are chasing the sober-curious, mood-enhancing, fridge-stocking crowd too.


Nick Jonas and Schick Try to Make Shaving Feel Like Skincare

Nick Jonas partnered with Schick for its “Do Right By Your Skin” campaign, which positions shaving less as a chore and more as part of a skincare routine. This is clever because shaving has traditionally been marketed with either extreme ruggedness or suspiciously smooth slow-motion razor shots. Schick is trying to modernize the conversation by linking razors with skin health, daily grooming, and self-care. Jonas is a natural fit for this kind of campaign: polished, recognizable, and unlikely to make skincare feel intimidating. For Schick, the partnership is less about reinventing razors and more about reframing the product. In other words, it is not just “remove hair from face or body.” It is “respect your skin, you exhausted mammal.”


The Rock Keeps Building Papatui Into a Men’s Skincare Staple

Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson continued expanding his Papatui men’s care brand with a push around its SPF 30 daily moisturizer, available at Target. This move is smart for several reasons. First, sunscreen is no longer just a beach product; it is increasingly part of everyday skincare. Second, men’s grooming has grown well beyond body wash that smells like “Arctic Thunder Panther Mountain.” Third, The Rock has the rare ability to make sunscreen seem both practical and slightly heroic. Papatui’s accessible price point and Target placement suggest the brand is not chasing luxury skincare snobs. It is chasing regular shoppers who want something simple, affordable, and endorsed by a man who looks like he could bench-press a pharmacy aisle.


Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino Shows What a Celebrity Alcohol Brand Can Become

Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino tequila was highlighted last week for reportedly reaching around $200 million in retail sales in about three years. That is a meaningful number because celebrity tequila has become so crowded that simply attaching a famous name to an agave bottle is no longer enough. Hart’s brand appears to be moving beyond novelty and into genuine commercial traction. The lesson here is painfully obvious but still frequently ignored: celebrity helps with awareness, but the product still has to work. Consumers may buy once because they like the celebrity. They only buy again if the drink does not taste like a bad decision in liquid form. Gran Coramino’s reported sales suggest the brand has done more than generate buzz; it has found actual customers.


Celebrity Hospitality Is Glamorous Until the Restaurant Has to Survive Tuesday Night

Another interesting business development came from the release of 5WPR’s Hospitality Celebrity Index, which looked at celebrity involvement in restaurants, hotels, nightlife, and branded residences. The key idea is that celebrity hospitality can be powerful, but it is also extremely risky. A famous name may get people through the door once, but it will not fix bad service, overpriced food, weak operations, or a menu that seems to have been written by committee after two espressos and a branding workshop. The strongest celebrity hospitality ventures tend to combine fame with experienced operators and real category expertise. Translation: being beloved on television does not automatically qualify someone to manage table turnover, kitchen margins, liquor licensing, or the emotionally complex world of brunch reservations.


The Big Trend: Celebrities Want Businesses That Can Live Beyond the Hype

The larger story across all these celebrity business moves is that fame is becoming a launchpad, not the entire business model. Kendall Jenner’s 818 deal is about distribution. Robin Thicke’s Mimá is about riding the ready-to-drink cocktail wave. James Corden’s Noot is about functional, non-alcoholic beverages. Nick Jonas and Schick are reframing grooming. The Rock’s Papatui is chasing accessible men’s skincare. Kevin Hart’s Gran Coramino is showing what happens when a celebrity brand gets real retail traction. None of these moves are just “celebrity slaps name on product and hopes for applause.” Well, not entirely. The smarter plays are about building brands that can survive after the first wave of curiosity fades and shoppers start asking the cruelest question in capitalism: “Do I actually want to buy this again?”


Winners are increasingly the brands with distribution, product-market fit, credible positioning, and partners who understand the category. The losers will be the ones that assume fame alone can carry them, which is adorable in the same way a gold-plated parachute is adorable. Whether it is tequila, canned cocktails, mocktails, shaving products, sunscreen, or restaurants, the same rule applies... attention gets you noticed, but execution keeps you alive.

Fame may open the door, but the product still has to walk in without tripping over its own press release.


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References

The Spirits Business — “Sazerac backs Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila”https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2026/04/sazerac-backs-kendall-jenners-818-tequila/


People — “Robin Thicke Launches Mimá Cocktail Brand With High-ABV Canned Espresso Martini”https://people.com/robin-thicke-launches-mima-cocktail-brand-with-high-abv-canned-espresso-martini-11961067




Page Six — “Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Launches Papatui Sunscreen for Men”https://pagesix.com/2026/04/24/style/dwayne-the-rock-johnson-launches-papatui-sunscreen-for-men/



JD Supra — “The Business of Show Business: Kevin Hart”https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/the-business-of-show-business-kevin-6643783/


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