Award-Winning Tequila Brand Shuts Down After More Than 6 Years

(Photo: Pancho Datos/Instagram)

Premium tequila brand Pancho Datos will cease operations after six-and-a-half years, with its founder citing sustained challenges in scaling the business to a commercially viable level.

Announcing the decision on LinkedIn, managing director Stuart Wischhusen said the company had been unable to achieve the growth needed to maintain long-term operations.

“It is with great sadness to announce that after six-and-a-half-years, Tequila Pancho Datos will soon be coming to an end,” Wischhusen said, according to The Spirits Business. “It has been a long, hard-fought road for us but unfortunately we haven’t been able to grow the brand to the level that we needed to.”

The brand, produced at NOM 1560 in El Arenal, Jalisco, was founded by Luis Carlos Grijalva and first launched in the UK market in 2018. Its portfolio includes a Plata expression and a Reposado aged for 10 months in ex-bourbon white oak barrels.

The Reposado expressionearned a Gold Outstanding medal at the 2025 International Wine and Spirits Competition, earning an impressive 98 -point score.

Wischhusen pointed to a combination of macroeconomic pressures — including the impact of Covid-19, Brexit, and the cost-of-living crisis — as key factors that made it difficult for a premium-priced tequila startup to gain traction in both on-trade and retail channels.

He described the closure process as a “solvent winding up,” with remaining stock to be sold through existing retail channels as the company winds down operations and settles outstanding obligations.

The brand previously secured investment, including a $500,00 funding round in 2024, but Wischhusen said further investment was not viable to continue scaling the business.

While operations are ending, remaining bottles are still available in select retailers and are expected to remain in circulation over the coming months.