Kendall Jenner’s tequila company has been slammed by a rival who is suing them for copyright infringement to claim the product is ‘half assed’, over priced, and of a lesser quality.
A furious dispute has broken out between Kendall’s controversial Tequila 818 brand and a company called Tequila 512 – who have been around longer and take more time creating their alcohol.
Branding for both companies is strikingly similar – with 818 claiming they take their name from the 818 telephone area code of 26-year-old Kendall’s native Calabasas, while 512 is related to that companies roots in Texas.
Last year, Tequila 512, who launched in 2020, declared their intention to take action against Kendall’s company, which launched in 2021, and now CEO Nick Mazorkis has given a stinging interview to The Sun where he savages Kendall’s brand.
He told the publication: "During the time [Kendall's] 818 tequila was shopping for a tequila supplier in Mexico in preparation for their pending eventual launch, they visited the distillery that makes Tequila 512.
"All tequila companies shopping distilleries who visited ours, are shown other successful brands ... to help lure business. Tequila 512 was no exception."
The Sun goes on to state: “On the likelihood the Austin brand was seen by her, Nick added ‘It's almost like a joke’.”
And Nick is then quoted saying: “They played us for fools. They're fumbling their way into the tequila industry half a**.”
He goes on to claim that a bottle similar to that of his 512 brand featured in a video game created by Kim Kardashian as well as highlighting similarities between the bottles Kendall’s company produces and that of his own.
He also claims the 818 brand only distills their tequila twice while 512 distills three times to create a smoother, richer blend – but Kendall’s produce is being flogged for “twice as much per bottle” than the 512 brand.
The Sun also notes that Kim and Kendall have not been named a defendant’s in the 512 case as it is rather the 818 company that is being challenged.
The Mirror has contacted representatives of both Tequila 818 and the Kardashian-Jenners for comment.
Previously, Tequila 512 lashed out at Tequila 818 online after fans questioned why the two products looked so similar.
Taking to Instagram, 512 wrote: “You may have seen that @kendalljenner released a 'new' tequila today.
“Note the similarities, including the color, the name and it is made at the same distillery in Tequila Mexico as ours.
“Their batches are being distilled twice. Ours three times. Yet she is charging twice as much per bottle.
“And here we are getting messages like the one in this post image. Doesn’t seem very cool. What do you think?”
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