Founding 21Seeds Tequila With Kat Hantas

Kat Hantas is the co-founder of 21 Seeds, an infused tequila brand that was acquired by Diageo for $160 Million after just three years in business, being the largest exit ever by a female-founded spirits brand. Previously, Kat had a 15-year career in the film industry, working at Creative Artists Agency and as an independent producer developing horror and music-driven films.

 

In this interview, Kat shares her entrepreneurial journey, from starting her first business right out of college to pivoting to a film career focused on specific niches to launching 21 Seeds to solve her own pain points around finding an easy-to-drink, low-calorie alternative to wine and cocktails. 21 Seeds differentiated itself by targeting a specific customer - women and moms - with an elevated, all-natural infused tequila. The brand took off quickly, landing national distribution in under two years.

 

Kat shares candid insights useful for entrepreneurs and business leaders, including the importance of focusing relentlessly on a specific customer, hiring people with complementary skills, building a culture of respect and results, and understanding the operational drivers in your business. This is a must-listen interview for anyone interested in consumer products, branding, entrepreneurship, and learning from a founder who defied the odds to build a category-creating brand and successful exit in record time.

 

 

Episode Outline

Here is a concise outline of the key topics discussed in the interview, with timestamps:

(00:00:00) Introduction and overview of Kat Hantas' background
(00:04:13) Kat's childhood in Peru and moving to the US with her mother
(00:11:07) Impact of seeing her mother's work ethic and hustle
(00:14:39) Early entrepreneurial ventures and lessons learned
(00:22:06) Working in the film industry after college
(00:38:49) Challenges and ultimate failure of the movie "Taking Five"
(00:48:26) Stepping back from work to focus on family and early motherhood
(00:54:20) Health issues leading to switch from wine to infused tequila
(01:03:08) Recognizing the market opportunity for elevated infused tequila
(01:13:06) Launching 21 Seeds with her sister and co-founder in 2019
(01:15:58) Choosing Diageo as the acquirer for 21 Seeds
(01:21:58) The intensive due diligence process leading up to acquisition
(01:24:10) The emotional impact of the exit and concern for the team
(01:30:40) Advice for building an excellent team with separate swim lanes
(01:34:40) Dealing with copycats and the importance of speed to market
(01:38:13) Reflections on the 21 Seeds journey and future plans

 

Episode Links

 

21Seeds (company co-founded by Kat Hantas): www.21Seeds.com
21Seeds Instagram: www.instagram.com/21seeds
Kat’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kathantas/
Kat’s Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-hantas-ba0621163/

 

 

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