Diageo has agreed an equity stake swap with brand investment group Main Street Advisors that will see the Lobos 1707 tequila brand replace Cîroc vodka on its books.
The transaction, announced today (7 April) centres around the formation of a “strategic joint venture” between the two companies. Diageo will assume majority ownership of Lobos 1707 in return for its majority control of the brand rights for Cîroc in North America.
The JV “will oversee the Cîroc brand in North America and the Lobos 1707 brand worldwide”, Diageo said. TikTok’s former global head of marketing, Nick Tran, will head up the JV as president & CMO, with Lobos 1707 founder Diego Osorio remaining with the tequila business.
The news comes almost four months after the group was reported to have “reached out to potential suitors including beverage companies and buyout firms to gauge their interest” in acquiring Cîroc. The brand had been the subject of an “equal-share venture” with rapper Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs since 2007, although the partnership soured to the point of Combs bringing legal proceedings against Diageo in 2023. The matter was settled 15 months ago, with Diageo taking outright ownership of the jointly-held DeLeón tequila brand.
As well as DeLeón, Lobos 1707 will sit alongside the Casamigos and Don Julio brand’s in Diageo’s tequila portfolio.
“We’re thrilled to bring together two great brand builders, Diageo and Main Street Advisors, to shape culture in new and meaningful ways,” said Diageo North America’s CEO, Sally Grimes. “Together, we will establish a strong platform to unleash the full potential of the Cîroc brand for new generations and to drive the next phase of growth for Lobos 1707.”
Speaking to Global Drinks Intel last year, Lobos 1707 founder Osorio distanced the brand from those heavily-linked with celebrities, despite basketball player LeBron James having invested in the tequila.
“I don’t believe in the authenticity of some of the celebrities selecting barrels and agave plants,” he said. “You’ll never see any of our celebrities doing any of that. What we’re doing is working. It’s cutting through the noise.”
