Dwayne Johnson’s Teremana Tequila eyes global expansion with Mast-Jägermeister deal

Teremana Tequila, the liquor brand co-owned by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, is poised for a major global expansion thanks to a new deal with German liquor giant Mast-Jägermeister.

Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Cofounded by Johnson along liquor industry veterans Jenna Fagnan and Ken Austin as well as bodybuilder Dany Garcia, the company first launched in March 2020 with an initial rollout in the United States, followed by sales in Canada and Mexico.

In its investor and partnership roles, Mast-Jägermeister will serve as the exclusive distribution partner for the brand, also tasked with bringing in bring additional global sales, marketing, and logistics expertise as well as organizational structure to support sales growth.

And if recent numbers indicate Teremana's future directory, it will need a plan to scale exponentially and fast. The super premium spirits company sold more than 640,000 cases in 2021 alone.

Teremana is produced at the Destileria Teremana de Agave in Jalisco, Mexico. With three expressions—a blanco, a reposado, and an añejo—the brand's name loosely translates as "spirit of the earth."

The drinks business has been an alluring moneymaker for Hollywood celebrities over the last few years, from beer to wine to gin to hard seltzer to even non-alcoholic beverages primarily marketed as mixers. That's likely as alcohol sales have remained stable through economic downturns before and since the pandemic started, proving much more lucrative for celebrities to lend their name and time, compared to fragrances or skin care lines. And while there has been speculation the market could be oversaturated with celebrities, the liquor industry is less exclusive to newcomers given just how many entry points there are.

The gold standard, to date, is Casamigos, the tequila brand cofounded by George Clooney and Rande Gerber. Johnson, while hinting at a major deal to come for Teremana, even compared his company's success and trajectory to Casamigos in a recent Instagram post.

Diageo acquired Casamigos in 2017 in a deal estimated to be worth $1 billion. The conglomerate also bought Aviation Gin, co-owned by actor Ryan Reynolds, in 2020 in a deal worth up to $610 million.

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com