Spencer Matthews claims his alcohol intake stopped him from fulfilling his potential.
The former ‘Made In Chelsea’ star made the decision last year to stop drinking so he could be a better husband to his wife Vogue Williams and a better father to their now 14-month-old son Theodore.
After changing his relationship with booze 17 months ago, Spencer feels like an "F1 car" that has had the handbrake taken off and he’s more productive than ever.
Speaking to HELLO! Magazine, he said: "In the past I had a bit of a lazy streak. I had high opinions of myself without any real grounding reason to, and I made a bit of television that did OK, and all of a sudden life was pretty relaxed for me.
"I’ve always thought in the back of my mind that I could do something really special with my life and I was just on a real path to not achieving that – and I blame that on alcohol. It was like racing an F1 car with the handbrake on. Sobriety just released the handbrake and I was able to drive more freely."
Spencer, 31, was inspired to launch his new business, The Clean Liquor Company which specialises in an ultra low alcohol gin called ClearGin, which is 1.2 per cent proof.
The reality TV star is putting all his energy into making the company a success because the business has to "smash it".
He said: "This company has to smash it and has to be the best. Otherwise I would have failed miserably.
"I’d made the decision to not drink or to at least drastically change my relationship with alcohol. I started to think, ‘I wonder if alcohol-free gin is possible?’ And I started down that road about a year ago."
Spencer Matthews: Alcohol stopped me from fulfilling my potential
