Real Estate

Billionaire Family Builds a Real Estate Empire Fueled by Tequila

  • Jose Cuervo heir has been buying US properties for 15 years
  • Beckmann family owns buildings in Miami, Chicago through Agave
Jose Antonio Perez, left, and Gregory Schwartz of Agave Holdings.Source: Agave Holdings
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The heir to a fortune built on Jose Cuervo tequila has plowed cash into US commercial real estate for the past 15 years, quietly amassing a portfolio that runs from Miami to Minneapolis.

Juan Beckmann Vidal, the patriarch behind the tequila maker and other spirits housed under Becle SA, has purchased and developed at least 5 million square feet (464,515 square meters) of mostly commercial properties across three US states. All told, the buildings are worth more than $1 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.