ENTREPRENEUR couple Sukhvinder and Imran Javeed are best known for their short but memorable stint together in the Big Brother house.

Rather than get sucked into the reality TV machine after their two-week stay in the Channel 5 CCTV house in 2017, the couple turned their backs on fame and set about creating a luxury legacy alcohol brand unlike any other.

The result is Sphynx Tequila, a premium sipping tequila with a unique flavour due to being aged in red wine barrels.

In an exclusive interview with The Sun, the couple explain how they plucked up the courage to visit distilleries in Guadalajara, Mexico – region renowned for its dangerous cartels – to make their vision a reality.

"It was daunting and exciting at the same time, for me," says Sukhvinder, 44.

Imran, 44, adds: "After we came out of Big Brother we met some people who advised us they would take us on a tour. We were really persistent and had a lot of questions. They took us on a tour in Guadalajara and we went from distillery to distillery, literally knocked on doors to say 'can we learn about your production process? Can we figure out what's going on?' And they were so welcoming."

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While the business owners were more than accommodating, Imran says the trips wasn't without risk as the UK Foreign Office's official line at the time advised Brits not travel to the region unless it was essential.

Fortunately, the couple's trip was free of incident and, in total, they viewed 18 distilleries, before settling on a family run, female led business to partner with.

The clincher being the family's ageing process that sees the tequila mature in red wine barrels rather than traditional whiskey barrels. The result, Imran says, makes it like nothing else he's ever tasted.

The brand's signature range, which retails for £204 and £248, respectively – comes in glass decanters in the shape of a Sphynx cat's head.

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The mould for the decanter is based on the couple's pet Canadian Sphynx cat, who they happened to name tequila 18 months before setting out on their project.

Both Imran and Sukhvinder share a clear vision: make the best premium tequila in the world.

And they're not fazed by rival brands backed by big name celebrities such as Dwayne The Rock Johnson's Teremana tequila, Brian Cranston and Aaron Paul's Dos Hombres and George Clooney's former brand Casemigos, who he sold to drinks giant Diageo for $1billion in 2017.

Sukhvinder says: "Personally, I don't aspire to be like any of them because their tequilas are purely celebrity led.

"I want to be more classical, where you've got something that's a work of art. Our decanter is becoming a work of art. We've got so many great things happening with our decanters, and the liquid inside is just as good.

"Yeah, we fall into the category of celebrity, and I love that part of my world and it helps; it gives us that platform, but our product is premium because of the effort and the journey we've taken.

"We don't have any outside investment. We've invested everything into it ourselves. We really wanted to give the market something good. It's about teaching people to buy quality."

Imran adds: "I think we're completely different to them. I think we're bringing something new to the market. There is no aged tequilas made from red wine, not really, you won't find any. They're all whiskey based."

The word "legacy" is one the couple keep returning to, and indicates their brand and product is for the long haul.

Every step of their journey has been taken to ensure maximum quality and the best consumer experience, from a transparent supply chain and artistic decanter, to the choice of distillery and the productions methods.

This business certainly isn't a case of two reality stars trying to make a fast buck.

Sukhvinder says: "There's always going to be other brands out there. There's always going to be other tequilas out there, but there's not going to be anybody with the vision Imran and I have, and the dream we've got, and what we're bringing to market.

"We could easily have gone for a turnkey solution; a mid tier tequila, put a big marketing budget behind it and sent it to market. We didn't want to do that. We wanted to create a legacy brand that hopefully will outlive us. When we've gone and moved on to the next realm, this will be a brand that's loved and will continue and be something everyone wants to drink.

"We want it to be the go-to tequila. When you think tequila, you think Sphynx. It's got global reach, but in the UK I want it to be the go to tequila so when you're sat in your top tier eateries or when you're out partying that's the bottle you want to see sat on your table. I think it should be in the next James Bond movie. That's the vision. And it's to have fun."

It's been a hell of a journey from Big Brother to distilleries in rural Mexico, but did the show help or hinder their business aspirations?

"We already had our lives made," says Sukhvinder. "We didn't go on reality TV to make us; it was to elevate us.

"We chose to disappear for five years, to be honest, and come back when we've got something tangible and great to show the world."

Imran says: "No regrets at all. It was an amazing experience. It really changed the way I believed in what I can achieve as well. Without Big Brother I wouldn't be sat here with this tequila business today. It allowed me to dream I can do whatever I want. I can go to Mexico and say 'I want to create tequila'."

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