List of Celebrity Alcohol Brands Impacted by Donald Trump’s Tariffs

Tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on all countries, coupled with previously levied tariffs on countries like Mexico, will impact the alcohol industry and possibly celebrities financially immersed in the industry.

Why It Matters

Wall Street took a tumble on Thursday, hitting its lowest level since 2020 as more than 180 countries have been impacted by 10 percent tariffs.

Trump said the markets are “going very well,” though the potential long-term ramifications of these sweeping tariffs could have drastic economic implications for Americans aside from global citizens.

Advancing American Freedom, a group formed by former Vice President Mike Pence, analyzed the new tariffs and said they could cost Americans more than $3,500 annually. An analysis conducted by the Budget Lab at Yale University shows a harsher reality in which yearly costs could balloon to $4,200.

If consumers tighten their purse strings, alcohol could be one of the items that takes a hit. Sales of alcohol in full-service restaurants account for more than 20 percent of total sales, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States, which could have far-ranging impact on the broader economy as it pertains to bars, restaurants, employees and the copious number of brands that produce beer, wine and spirits.

What To Know

The following is a list of celebrities who own their own alcohol brands, and where their products are made:

• Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston – Dos Hombrez Mezcal (Oaxaca, Mexico)
• Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson – Teremana tequila (Jalisco, Mexico)
• Kylie Jenner – 818 Tequila (Jalisco, Mexico)
• Kevin Hart – Gran Coramino tequila (Tequila, Mexico)
• George Clooney (formerly; sold to Diageo in 2017) – Casamigos tequila (Jalisco, Mexico)
• Michael Jordan – Cincoro tequila (Tequila, Mexico)
• Jay-Z – D’USSÉ Cognac (Cognac, France)
• Matthew McConaughey – Wild Turkey Longbranch bourbon (Lawrenceburg, Kentucky)
• Kate Hudson – King St. Vodka (Santa Barbara, California)
• Francis Ford Coppola – Winery (Geyserville, California)
• Bob Dylan – Heaven’s Door Whiskey (Pleasureville, Kentucky)
• Ryan Reynolds – Aviation Gin (Portland, Oregon)

Newsweek reached out to many of the listed celebrities for comment regarding tariffs and the effects on their brands.

IWSR, a leading global drinks data and insight provider, said in May 2024 that celebrity alcohol brands continue to grow even though the overall rate has slowed since 2022, as celebrity brands tend to outperform the larger market.

IWSR reported that in 2023, celebrity whiskies grew 8 percent by volume compared to 2 percent for the whisky category as a whole. Celebrity rum outperformed the general market as well, growing 11 percent while the general market declined by 4 percent.

Tequila has become a go-to for celebrities jumping into the booze industry. In 2022, celebrity tequilas grew by 40 percent, or three times the overall category growth rate of 13 percent. In 2023, celebrity tequila brands increased 16 percent as the overall category grew just 3 percent.

Marten Lodewijks, president of IWSR Americas, told Newsweek on Thursday that celebrity brands tend to last based on two overarching metrics: one, whether the product is actually good or not; and two, if the product is authentic and viewed by the celebrity owner or endorser as more than just a short-term marketing promotion.

He said that generally, 12 to 24 months of strong performance for such brands is a good sign.

“I don’t see how [tariffs] wouldn’t [impact celebrities],” Lodewijks said. “What we’ve seen over the last sort of like 12-18 months, there actually have not been a lot of celebrity-backed brands launched.”

He said new celebrity brands are relatively easy to enter the market because of contract manufacturing and putting a name and/or face on the product

“What we’ve noticed a lot more of in the last [few] years is celebrities getting behind the sort of ready-to-drink (RTD) space, either with canned or premade cocktails or hard seltzer or functional beverages and those sorts of things in large part because that category is still growing. Spirits have been in decline,” he said.

RTDs are also more of a domestic product and a lower out-of-pocket purchase versus a bottle of spirits. Increasing costs of spirits make RTDs more attractive to consumers.

“It’s growing by virtue of its innovation and the appeal to consumers, the broad appeal, the variety that you have,” he added. “I think you if you continue to add a sort of pricing advantage it just [adds] more fuel to that fire to keep it going and having people more people trading out of other categories into the sort of ready-to-drink space.

“I can’t speak on behalf of any celebrity, but if I was a celebrity, I wouldn’t look at an import category at this point. It would make no sense.”

What People Are Saying

Cris deRitis, deputy chief economist of Moody’s Analytics, told Newsweek: “In terms of shopper behavior and price psychology, we expect a pull-forward in spending in the immediate term as consumers try to get ahead of the tariffs before they are fully implemented.

“This could lead to a short-term boost to spending and GDP data with slower growth/declines later in the year. If consumers develop a belief that tariffs will be removed or reduced, this could lead them to delay purchases which could further drag on spending and output and push up unemployment and the odds of recession.”

What Happens Next

A 25 percent tariff on “all foreign-made automobiles” will take effect on April 3. The 10 percent “baseline” tariffs will take effect on April 5 and the reciprocal tariffs will kick in on April 9.