Kevin Hart live on TBPN
TL;DR
Kevin Hart says celebrity brands fail without real operator energy — he repeatedly rejected the “slap a famous name on a bottle” model and framed Gran Coramino as a long-term family asset, not a quick check-grab.
Gran Coramino was built to stand out in an oversaturated tequila market by pairing Kevin Hart’s hands-on involvement with Proximo and Juan Domingo Beckmann Jr.’s distribution muscle — Hart and partner James described that combination of founder agility plus industrial-scale access as the real differentiator.
The company’s core story is ‘hard work tastes different’ — Hart tied the tequila to daily celebration, saying the brand had to reflect how he actually lives and drinks, since tequila is the only spirit he drinks.
Distribution came from old-fashioned ground work, not Instagram reach — Hart compared selling tequila to a hungry artist visiting every radio station, stressing in-person meetings with retailers, restaurants, and liquor stores to earn real support.
The numbers are now big enough to matter: Gran Coramino did $200 million and grew 100% year over year — James called it the fastest-growing celebrity tequila brand in the world.
Hart’s broader playbook is simple but demanding: support new media, stay structured, and do the work yourself — he cited Kim Kardashian as someone who doesn’t get enough credit because she actually shows up, and said he approaches business the same way.
The Breakdown
Kevin Hart Opens by Shouting Out the Operator Behind the Brand
Hart immediately flips the spotlight onto James, his business partner, and calls him an “executor.” Instead of leading with his own fame, he makes the point that good business only happens with people who can actually build, vet partners, and turn ideas into reality.
Why He Entered Tequila Anyway
James says they wanted to enter tequila for years, but the celebrity tequila market already felt noisy and overcrowded. Hart’s line in the sand was clear: he would never put his name on something he couldn’t authentically use every day, which is why tequila made sense — in his words, it’s the only thing he drinks, so building his own version felt natural.
The Story: Hard Work, Celebration, and ‘Rare Air’
Hart says they didn’t just want a product; they wanted a story that represented him “in the best way.” That became Gran Coramino’s central idea: life should be celebrated, and hard work should be celebrated too — “hard work tastes different” is basically the emotional hook.
The Real Moat Was Access to the Beckmann Machine
When asked how they’d break through in a crowded category, Hart points straight to Juan Domingo Beckmann Jr. and the family’s generations-deep success in tequila. For him, the breakthrough came from convincing Beckmann this wasn’t a celebrity vanity play but a serious business built for generational wealth, family legacy, and long-term scale.
Building the Brand Meant Disruption Plus Distribution
James explains that big corporations usually innovate, but independent companies disrupt. Their model was to operate like an agile entrepreneurial company in market every day, while leveraging Proximo and the Beckmann organization for scale — basically speed and hustle on one side, muscular distribution on the other.
Social Following Doesn’t Replace Street-Level Selling
One of Hart’s strongest moments is when he pushes back on the idea that a huge platform automatically sells bottles. He says real distribution means showing up, shaking hands, telling the story, and convincing retailers and restaurant partners that “he’s not here for fiction, he’s here for real,” comparing the grind to a new artist visiting every radio station and hearing mostly no’s before the breakthrough yes.
The Business Is Now Big, and Hart Thinks Most Celebrities Shouldn’t Try This
James says Gran Coramino grew 100% year over year and reached $200 million, calling it the fastest-growing celebrity tequila brand in the world. Then both of them make the contrarian point: most celebrities should stick to endorsements, because owning a business only works if you’re willing to prioritize it, stay on the phone through good and bad days, and actually understand the business behind the brand.
Hart’s Bigger Philosophy: Structure, New Media, and Winning Slightly More
Asked how he juggles movies, comedy, family, and business, Hart says everything has to fit his lifestyle and run through a system, not a constant battle for time. He also says the biggest shift in entertainment has been the rise of younger creators, streamers, and on-demand behavior; instead of fighting that, he wants to support it — and he closes with a joke that sums up the whole interview: he wants everybody to win, just “slightly less than me.”