Why are so many actors launching their own businesses? Inside the growing movement

For two decades, tequila brands courted Eva Longoria to promote their products or launch her own line. And for a long time, the "Desperate Housewives" alum was adamant about saying no.

"They're like, you've gotta do a tequila. You're Mexican," Longoria told The Times. "I didn't really drink it back in the day, and I didn't want to put my name on something that I didn't authentically like or consume."

Then came the pandemic, she said, "and COVID drove me to cocktails." For the first time, Longoria found herself drawn to the taste and "the art" of tequila.

Longoria's tequila awakening arrived at an opportune moment for Casa Del Sol, which impressed her with its "smooth," Cognac-barrel-aged drinks.

The actor-director-producer joined Casa Del Sol as a co-founder in 2021, and she's among a rapidly growing contingent of actors who are also entrepreneurs, juggling their film and TV projects with business endeavors outside Hollywood.

"It's a lot of work," Longoria said, "but I really enjoy the work."

Pioneering celebrity businesswomen such as Jessica Alba (the Honest Co.), Iman (Iman Cosmetics), Gwyneth Paltrow (Goop) and Beyoncé (Ivy Park) have opened the floodgates in recent years for more performers to branch out and embark on their own entrepreneurial journeys.

Nearly 60% of all celebrity brands — spanning beauty and cosmetics, apparel and footwear, wellness, home goods and other retail sectors — were founded in the last six years, and more than a third of modern celebrity brands were launched in 2020 or later, according to a report published in September by . Actors make up the biggest group of retail business owners in