Lobos 1707 Tequila & Mezcal

When Diego Osorio opened the ledger on Lobos 1707, he folded biography into business. The brand’s origin story — an ancestor named Lobos carrying Spanish oak barrels of agave spirit back to Spain in the early 18th century — provided its creative scaffolding. Osorio formally launched Lobos 1707 in November 2020, debuting the portfolio (Joven, Reposado, Extra Añejo and a Mezcal Artesanal) initially in New York, California and Florida and online via ReserveBar. The timing was audacious: the pandemic had accelerated direct-to-consumer discovery even as supply chains lurched, but premium tequila’s cultural momentum made 2020 fertile ground for a well-crafted newcomer. ([prnewswire.com](^[1]), [lobos1707.com](^[2]))

The brand’s early business architecture married Osorio’s creative provenance with heavy-hitting commercial muscle. From day one Lobos 1707 positioned itself as an 'ultra-premium' player: 100% Blue Weber agave, PX (Pedro Ximénez) sherry-barrel finishing using solera techniques, and bottle design that explicitly ties to the Osorio family coat of arms. But beyond craft credentials, the company leaned into celebrity capital: LeBron James and Maverick Carter were early backers via Main Street Advisors, and the investment group roster that accompanied initial growth included athletes such as Anthony Davis and Draymond Green plus industry backers like Torch Capital and Mezorio Spirits. Those names opened doors in retail, hospitality, and media that a newcomer rarely earns. ([prnewswire.com](^[1]), [lobos1707.com](^[2]))

Celebrity involvement at Lobos 1707 has been both symbolic and operational. LeBron James is an investor and public face — he appears in advertising and at high-profile launches — but the company consistently emphasized that stewardship sits with spirits professionals. Dia Simms, a 20-year spirits executive previously credited with growing CÎROC during her tenure at Combs Enterprises, joined as CEO at launch and later transitioned in August 2023 to Executive Chairwoman while Carlos Vigil (ex-Southern Glazer's) became President & COO. Those leadership moves signaled that Lobos 1707 intended to temper celebrity lift with category expertise and distribution know-how. ([uproxx.com](^[3]), [prnewswire.com](^[4]))

Market access — the vital artery for any consumer beverage — was prioritized early. In April 2021 Lobos 1707 signed a national alignment with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, bringing instant route-to-market in a U.S. three-tier system that penalizes distribution fragmentation. The brand pushed outward fast: it reported March 2022 expansion into Ontario through the LCBO and later entered the U.K. through Selfridges in late 2023. Digital channels (ReserveBar, Proof™ e‑commerce via Southern Glazer’s) and theatrical launch events — including a March 2022 Toronto opening where LeBron and Drake appeared together — amplified reach and media attention. ([newsroom.southernglazers.com](^[5]), [prnewswire.com](^[6]), [finance.yahoo.com](^[7]))

Lobos 1707’s business journey included tactical product plays to lock credibility. Its Reposado won Best Reposado Tequila at the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition — a rare and fast credential for a brand only two years old — and the portfolio collected multiple medals across the Tequila & Mezcal Masters, SIP Awards and New York competitions. The brand used these blind-tasting wins as proof-points in sales pitches to on‑premise accounts and premium retail doors. Lobos also staged cause and culture maneuvers: a (RED) partnership in April 2024 with a $100,000 commitment to the Global Fund and a star-driven creative campaign, “Agent 1707,” featuring LeBron James and Victoria Justice in August 2024, were calibrated to marry prestige with cultural relevance. ([prnewswire.com](^[8]), [bevnet.com](^[9]))

Operational realities were more prosaic and, at times, constraining. Founder interviews and industry reporting show Lobos moved from a small initial inventory run to a national relaunch within months because early sell-through exhausted initial supply — Osorio said that six months of inventory lasted three weeks, forcing a strategic reset. The category itself has been volatile: between 2021 and 2024 the tequila industry swung between hot demand and a looming agave oversupply/price collapse that has left many growers and brands rethinking planting and capacity. Lobos publicly signaled growth ambitions — Osorio told trade press the company had crossed one million bottles and was targeting roughly 150,000 nine‑litre cases while its Mexican distillery capacity sits at about 250,000 nine‑litre cases — but independent industry trackers placed U.S. volumes closer to tens of thousands of cases in the brand’s early years. Those discrepancies—between operational capacity, founder targets, and on-the-ground sell-through—are a common fault-line for fast-scaling spirits brands. ([drinks-intel.com](^[10]), [just-drinks.com](^[11]), [shankennewsdaily.com](^[12]))

The brand’s biggest inflection came in April 2025, when Diageo and Main Street Advisors announced a strategic joint venture in which Diageo would take majority ownership of Lobos 1707 worldwide in exchange for transferring majority North American rights to Cîroc to Main Street Advisors — a swap reported across the trade press. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the arrangement plugged Lobos into Diageo’s global supply‑chain, category management and worldwide route-to-market muscle while giving Diageo a sharper stake in premium agave amid vodka’s slippage. For Lobos 1707, the deal crystallized the paradox of celebrity brands: cultural cachet and product wins had created a runway that major groups now wanted to underwrite at scale. ([ft.com](^[13]), [just-drinks.com](^[14]))

Where Lobos 1707 matters as a business case is in its disciplined fusion of storytelling, craft technicalities and platform partnerships. It did not launch as 'just' LeBron’s tequila; it invested early in tasting validation, formal distributor alignment (Southern Glazer’s, LCBO, Selfridges), and a leadership bench with real category pedigrees (Dia Simms, later Carlos Vigil). The brand also used limited availability releases — a 2023 Limited Edition Añejo restock totaling roughly 9,000 bottles — to create scarcity economics and support price integrity at premium accounts. Those decisions insulated the liquid from some celebrity‑brand skepticism and produced measurable wins. ([prnewswire.com](^[15]), [newsroom.southernglazers.com](^[5]))

The Lobos story is also a cautionary lesson about perimeter risk. Celebrity associations accelerate awareness but do not replace operational fundamentals: inventory planning, agave sourcing, and multi-state compliance. The larger category dynamics — from agave oversupply to shifting U.S. consumer tastes and moderation trends — mean even brands with star power must treat supply and margin engineering as their core competency. Lobos’ pivot to partner with Diageo suggests its leaders chose to trade some ownership control for global scale and the logistical heft necessary to convert boutique success into a durable global premium brand. ([ft.com](^[16]), [consumergoods.com](^[17]))

Today (mid‑2025), Lobos 1707 sits at a distinct inflection: product awards and celebrity-driven campaigns make it culturally visible; a 2025 joint venture with Diageo gives it scale; and the category’s boom‑and‑bust dynamics force the brand to prove it can turn prestige into profitable, repeatable distribution. For celebrity founders and investors, Lobos provides a template — and a warning — about the difference between creating a desirable bottle and building a durable spirits business.

• November 18, 2020 — Public launch of Lobos 1707 Tequila & Mezcal (initial availability in New York, California, Florida and online). ([prnewswire.com](^[1]))
• April 6, 2021 — National distribution alignment announced with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits to accelerate U.S. roll‑out. ([newsroom.southernglazers.com](^[2]))
• March 21, 2022 — Official launch into the Canadian market (Ontario/LCBO availability; launch event in Toronto attended by Diego Osorio and investor LeBron James). ([prnewswire.com](^[3]))
• June 27, 2022 — Lobos 1707 Reposado wins Best Reposado Tequila at the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. ([prnewswire.com](^[4]))
• October 11, 2023 — Limited‑Edition Añejo restocked and expanded to 28 U.S. markets with ~9,000 total bottles available. ([prnewswire.com](^[5]))
• August 21, 2023 — Dia Simms transitions from CEO to Executive Chairwoman of the Board; Carlos Vigil joins as President & COO (executive team expansion). ([prnewswire.com](^[6]))
• April 7–8, 2025 — Diageo and Main Street Advisors announce a strategic joint venture: Diageo to take majority ownership of Lobos 1707 worldwide in a transaction that exchanges North American Cîroc rights; terms undisclosed. ([ft.com](^[7]), [just-drinks.com](^[8]))