george clooney has amassed all the material wealth a man can want during their lifetime. He's about to get a whole lot richer, though. The actor and his partners just sold their tequila business for a whopping sum, which will surely lead to major payouts for everyone involved. The only question that will be asked of Clooney: will that money be going towards his growing family or assisting in some of his major social causes?
Clooney sells Casamigos
Casamigos was formed four years ago by Clooney, Rande Gerber, and a group of partners. On Wednesday, they decided to kiss their tequila business goodbye for $700 million, with $300 million more available depending on performance-based incentives for the brand.
The brand was purchased by Diageo PLC, which also owns Don Julio, DeLeon and Peligroso, among other brands. The London-based distillers are now one of the biggest distiller brands in the entire world.
At the time of the sale, Casamigos was on track to sell around 170,000 cases during the fiscal year; those cases are generally sold for around $50 a pop. The goal behind the company was to sell great tasting tequila, and the sales goals reached each year indicated that they were successful. Now, Clooney, Gerber, and Mike Meldman are very rich men (although they already were before this deal).
How should Clooney spend his money?
Splitting $1 billion three ways, even after taxes, means each owner should make out with hundreds of millions of dollars.
It's not money that George Clooney needs, and he's sure to give plenty of it to various charities of his choosing. People will take a special interest in his finances anyways, though, because he's George Clooney.
Just two weeks ago, his wife Amal gave birth to twins, making Clooney a father for the first time. Like any parent, he probably wants to spoil his kids and insulate them from the problems of the world.
If he didn't have the money to do that before, he certainly does now.
Or he can funnel the money into causes close to his heart. Clooney is well known for his humanitarian work. He has been particularly active in fighting on behalf of the marginalized people in Darfur, Armenia, and Syria. If managed properly - a big 'if,' admittedly - $50 million going to each cause can make a significant impact in changing the lives of people who don't have the means to change their own lives and need assistance from a benefactor such as the actor.
