As if being a world-famous celebrity wasn't enough, these stars have turned their hands to the world of business too, creating their own food and drink ranges. From Jon Bon Jovi's pasta sauces to George Clooney's tequila, some of these celeb-owned brands may surprise you.
Dolly Parton has swapped Jolene for Jeni’s. After teaming up with Jeni’s ice cream in 2021, the country music icon is back for another scoop in 2022. Dolly’s flavour, Strawberry Pretzel Pie, features layers of pretzel streusel, cream cheese ice cream and lipstick red (of course!) strawberry sauce. For 2022, the ice cream release celebrates Dolly’s book and album, Run, Rose, Run. A special bonus track, Rose Of My Heart, is available exclusively on the Jeni’s website. Proceeds from the ice cream sales will benefit Dolly’s Imagination Library, which has gifted more than 173 million free books to children.
Anything released by supermodel and Keeping Up With The Kardashians star Kendall Jenner is bound to generate buzz. So when Jenner launched her new tequila brand 818 Tequila in May 2021, its products flew off the shelves. By July, 818 Tequila had already exceeded sales forecasts for its first two years of business. However, critics have accused Jenner of appropriating Mexican culture in her ads. Jenner recently announced she was giving back to the community of Jalisco by turning waste from tequila production into bricks for housing.
The Who singer Roger Daltrey has partnered with drinks brand Eminent Life to launch a limited-edition champagne. The fizz, originally created to honour the band’s 50th anniversary, is made from the three classic Champagne grape varieties – Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier – and retails at £95 ($130). It’s sold in a bottle inspired by the band’s iconic logo, and a percentage of all sales goes towards Teen Cancer America.
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Mariah Carey, the multi-Grammy Award-winning singer, has branched out into the liqueur business. She launched her own brand of Irish cream liqueur, Black Irish, in August 2021, to much excitement. However the singer has already become embroiled in a trademark battle over the name, as a Dublin-based spirits company is already bottling its drinks under the same name. At present, this means the liqueur cannot be sold in the EU.
Once upon a time, Sylvester Stallone had his own low-carb High Protein Pudding. Packed with a whopping 20g (0.7oz) of protein, the smooth, creamy dessert was meant to give intrigued fans a body like Rocky Balboa. The athletic actor and director even got to promote the product during a live slot with Larry King.
From winning Grammy Awards and Academy Awards for his music to showing paintings in art exhibitions, Bob Dylan is not short on talent. His latest venture is a whiskey brand which includes a straight rye whiskey, a double barrel whiskey and a Tennessee straight bourbon. The musician initially wanted to call the venture Bootleg Whiskey after the album series, but after some name exploration settled on Heaven’s Door.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie bought Château Miraval in 2008. While many celebrity wines have been poorly received, or just downright terrible, Miraval wines are well-respected in the industry and have won many awards over the years. After the pair split in 2016, Jolie sold off her shares in the estate, but Pitt is continuing with the business. He's even trying to re-open a music studio on the estate, where Pink Floyd recorded part of their album The Wall.
Now a mother of three, actor Jennifer Garner has made a foray into the baby food industry. Once Upon a Farm, started in 2018, is as wholesome as it gets. Organic baby health food pouches come in flavours such as avocado, broccoli and blueberry. To top it off, some of the produce is grown on Jennifer’s family farm.
We pity the fools who missed out on Mr T cereal in the 1980s. The T-shaped, puffed corn bites were all the rage with A-Team star Mr T's fans. Simply named Mr T, the cereal was described on the box as a “crispy sweet corn and oats cereal”. Sadly, it has long been discontinued.
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If any youngsters in your family were fans of Disney Channel’s The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, you’ll remember actor Dylan Sprouse who played Zack. Since then he has been working on his own brand of honey wine. Brewed at the All-Wise Meadery in Brooklyn, it’s made from raw unfiltered honey and includes ingredients such as oolong tea and rose petals. The mead is currently sold at select Whole Foods stores in Texas and Louisiana.
This is more of a family-run business than just Jon himself, but back in 2012 the Livin’ on a Prayer singer’s father released a line of tomato sauces called Bongiovi. Described as a truly Italian-American experience, inspiration for the recipes came from Great Grandma Bongiovi who lived in Sicily.
The Toronto rapper has been coming out with hit after hit, but albums aren't the only thing Drake knows how to promote. He has a champagne brand named Mod Sélection which comes in six varieties including blanc de blanc and rosé, and they're available to order if you have a spare $400 (£304). He doesn’t call himself the Champagnepapi on social media for nothing.
When she's not winning Grand Slams, tennis star Maria Sharapova is working on her candy empire Sugarpova. The high-end brand is a reflection of her fun, fashionable and sweet side, and includes kitsch chocolates, truffles, gummies and gumballs.
Sadly Sir Paul's Old Stinkhorn beer (named after a mushroom which grows on his English estate, in case you were wondering) isn't for sale. It was brewed a couple of years back using hops from his estate and given to family and friends. Fran Healy from the band Travis has been the recipient of many crates since the pair worked together on an album in 2010.
It’s not just Paul McCartney getting creative in the kitchen. His ex-wife, British TV personality Heather Mills, has been at it too. VBites is her vegan brand that offers meat-free and dairy-free fish fingers, mozzarella, chicken pieces, bacon, burgers and pâté. The company has been running since 1993.
Born and Bred is all-American, just like its founder Channing Tatum. The collaboration began at the Grand Teton Distillery, Idaho, where the Magic Mike star went searching for the best vodka in America. He was so taken by the family business he decided to collaborate on a new one with them.
These days Donald Trump is known for politics rather than food production, but a few years back he was heading up his own line of mail-order steaks. Trump Steaks, on sale for between $200 to $900 (£152–£684), were self-described as the greatest steaks in the world. However, if you didn't try one at the time, it’s now too late.
The teen pop sensations Hanson are all grown up. While they’re still touring and making music, they’ve also ventured into the beer business. Cleverly branded Mmmhops, after their 1990s smash hit MMMBop, the brothers launched their signature pale ale in 2013.
Afternoon snacker? This Bar Saves Lives from The Good Place actor Kristen Bell donates one packet of food to children with malnutrition for every bar sold. Not just ethical, the granola bar comes in delicious flavours such as Dark Chocolate & Cherry and Wild Blueberry & Pistachio.
The actor co-founded premium vodka brand Crystal Head, which comes in what is arguably the most threatening bottle shape ever. When 21,000 bottles were stolen in 2011, Aykroyd joked that he was “happy that some consumers will be afforded the opportunity of tasting it at significantly lower than retail price.”
As a business-savvy pop star, it would be more of a surprise if Beyoncé hadn’t worked on a food brand. 22 Days Nutrition is a plant-based meal plan and line of vegan products endorsed by the billionaire music mogul. Although, Beyoncé herself is not actually vegan.
Late actor Paul Newman lives on in his line of Newman’s Own pasta sauces, dressings, pizzas, chocolates, cookies and other snacks. All profits from the venture go to charity, and the company website reports that, to date, more than $564 million (£406 million) has found its way to good causes.
Skinnygirl Cocktails is a range of ready-to-serve cocktails founded by Real Housewives of New York City star Bethenny Frankel. The low-calorie drink's flavours include mojito and white peach margarita. Frankel sold the business in 2011 for a reported $100 million (£76 million).
Conjure Cognac is rapper Ludacris’ venture into the food and drink world. It’s a blend of young and old cognacs that are aged in Limousin oak casks for three years. The brand was founded in 2009 and the hip-hop artist has been involved from the start. His favourite way to drink the spirit is with a splash of cola.
Offspring frontman Dexter Holland feels pretty fly after coming out with his own range of hot sauces named Gringo Bandito. The varieties are Original Red Sauce, Super Hot Sauce, Green Hot Sauce and Yellow Sauce. You can buy the bottles, and a range of affiliated merchandise, from Gringo Bandito’s online shop.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer star-turned entrepreneur Sarah Michelle Gellar is the woman behind Foodstirs, a brand that wants parents to connect with kids through baking. The utterly Instagrammable range includes kits to make colourful ice cream cone cupcakes, celestial-inspired iced doughnuts and chocolate-stuffed doughnuts.
Raucous Irish band The Pogues launched their own eponymous brand of whiskey in 2015. It’s a blend of grain and 50% single malt whiskeys, resulting in a nutty, malty aroma and intense flavour. Since then, they've released a second bottle, a single malt Irish whiskey, for Christmas 2019.
The rapper-turned-entrepreneur has one of the most successful celebrity beverage brands on the market. Cîroc vodka, which is the favoured tipple of celebrities, went from selling 40,000 cases in 2009 to two million in 2015 thanks to Diddy becoming the face of the brand. And it keeps on growing: in the financial year of 2021, Cîroc sales increased by 26%.
Haig Club is a whisky by former English footballer David Beckham. Or more accurately, he’s been a brand partner for the single grain Scotch whisky since 2014. It’s said to be Beckham’s tipple of choice at all events from fashion launches and birthday parties to camping trips.
The singer and actor first launched his tequila range in 2009 under the name 901, referring to his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. But Justin teamed up with Sauza in 2014, renaming it Sauza 901. Hands on with his business approach, the What Goes Around Comes Around singer has starred in a number of commercials for the brand.
The Academy Award-winning actor George Clooney co-owned a tequila brand called Casamigos with his best pal Rande Gerber – husband of supermodel Cindy Crawford. They got the idea on holiday when the pair craved a tequila they could sip neat and that didn't give them a hangover the next day. Clooney sold the company for up to $1 billion (£756.9 million) in 2017.
The Canadian actor is best known for starring in comedies such as Deadpool, but in 2018 he turned his attention to working with American brand Aviation Gin. He became a co-owner and ambassador, making the spirit one of America’s favourites. It was bought by British drinks giant Diageo in 2020, with Reynolds receiving a hefty sum from the deal.
The face behind Sex and the City's character Carrie, Sarah Jessica Parker is well-known for her interest in fashion, but turns out her entrepreneurial spirit extends into wine as well. A shareholder of Invivo wines, the actress has worked on creating her range of Sauvignon Blanc, Invivo X, SJP. The New Zealand-based company has also announced it'll be launching their own airline, Invivo Air, with the backing of Sarah Jessica Parker and another celebrity shareholder, British TV presenter Graham Norton.
If you could smell what The Rock is cooking, that would be tequila. Launched in March 2020, Teremana is made at and shipped from a Mexican family-owned distillery in the highlands of Jalisco that benefit from the backing of film and former WWE star Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. Credited as the founder of the company, Dwayne Johnson has big plans for Teremana and it has already delivered by achieving record sales in its first year. He's also eyeing up global expansion by teaming up with Mast-Jägermeister as an exclusive distribution partner.
British reggae band UB40 had a perfect product opportunity on their hands after they released the song Red Red Wine in 1983. Launched in 2017 by Ali Campbell, Astro and Mickey Virtue (who left the original band and have created a splinter group with the same name), Red Red Wine is a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes, giving a berry flavour with a slightly acidic finish.
Rapper Snoop Dogg is no stranger to dabbling in the food and drink industry, following a cookbook, nutritional supplements, a rumoured upcoming hot dog brand, alongside other projects and investments. And he's just announced a cereal brand, Snoop Loopz, which are promised to be "delicious fo' shizzle" and to contain "more marshmallows". While there is no known release date or further details as of yet, it's believed that Snoop Dogg's aim is to have his Snoop Loopz sold in supermarkets in the US, and there's a second flavour in the works called Honey Oat.
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