Alfonso Fanjul Jr.
Alfonso "Alfy" Fanjul Jr. | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Fanjul (left) with his wife Tina in 1969 | |
| Born | Alfonso Fanjul Gómez-Mena 8 September 1936 Havana, Cuba |
| Died | 3 August 2026 (aged 89) |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Spouse(s) |
Tina Fanjul (div. 2000)Raysa Herrera (m. 2007) |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Alfonso Fanjul Sr. Lillian Rosa Gomez-Mena |
| Relatives | José "Pepe" Fanjul (brother) José Gómez-Mena (grandfather) Norberto Azqueta Sr. (brother-in-law) |
Alfonso Fanjul Gómez-Mena (8 September 1936 – 3 August 2026), widely known as Alfonso "Alfy" Fanjul Jr., was a Cuban-born American billionaire businessman, and the eldest of the Fanjul brothers, who control a sugar and real estate business valued at US$8.2 billion.[1][2] He was often criticized[3] for the constant donations he made to the Democratic Party seeking political favors, and in particular, seeking to ensure the continuation of the governmental price support of sugar that the Fanjul family company, Domino Sugar, most directly benefits from.[4]
Early life and education
[edit]Alfonso Fanjul Gómez-Mena[5] was born in Havana on 8 September 1936 to Alfonso Fanjul Sr. and Lillian Rosa Gomez-Mena.[6] He held a bachelor's degree from Fordham University in New York.[7]
Career
[edit]In 1982, he became chairman of Flo-Sun Land Corporation, the family holding company, following the death of his father.[8]
In 1987, his net worth was estimated at US$500 million.[8]
Just like his brother José Fanjul, Alfonso held Spanish and American passports. Close friends of the abdicated-King Juan Carlos, both Fanjuls stated on various occasions that they would be willing to receive the exiled king as a guest in any of their mansions around the world.[9]
Personal life and death
[edit]Until their divorce was finalized in 2000,[7] Fanjul was married to Tina Fanjul, a real estate agent who runs a real estate company,[10] with whom he had two children: Crista, who stuided marine biology at the University of Miami[8] and went on to become a real estate agent;[11] and Lillian, an interior designer[12] who is married to Luis Fernandez, the co-president of American Sugar Refining.[13]
Fanjul married Raysa Herrera in 2007.[14] Douglas Elliman real estate agent Raissa Enis became his stepdaughter with this marriage.[1][15]
Fanjul died in Palm Beach, Florida on 3 August 2026, at the age of 89.[1][6]
Criticism
[edit]Swedish author and historian of ideas, Johan Norberg commented in his book The Capitalist Manifesto: Why the Global Free Market Will Save the World published in 2023 that:
Among the most successful American welfare queens are the brothers Alfonso and José Fanjul in Florida, who receive around $65 million in subsidies for their sugar empire annually. They use part of that money to buy political support for a continued stream of subsidies in their direction. The best that can be said about them is that they don't contribute to political polarization. During the irreconcilable presidential election campaign in 2016, the Fanjul brothers protected themselves by holding one fundraiser for Trump and one for Clinton.[16]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Wagner, Jodie. "Alfonso 'Alfy' Fanjul, Palm Beach sugar billionaire, dies at 89". The Palm Beach Post.
- ↑ "These Sugar Barons Built an $8 Billion Fortune With Washington's Help". Bloomberg.com. 9 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017 – via www.bloomberg.com.
- ↑ "A sweet deal: The royal family of cane benefits from political giving". america.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
- ↑ "In the Kingdom of Big Sugar". Vanity Fair. 5 January 2011. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
- ↑ "Muere Alfonso "Alfy" Fanjul, el empresario cubanoamericano que reconstruyó un imperio azucarero tras el exilio". Diario las Américas (in Spanish). 4 August 2026. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
- 1 2 Yanez, Luisa (August 4, 2026). "Cuban-born Alfonso Fanjul, who built a sugar empire in Florida, dies in Palm Beach". Miami Herald.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - 1 2 Brenner, Marie (5 January 2011). "In the Kingdom of Big Sugar". vanityfair.com. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- 1 2 3 "Exiled Cuban Family Builds Its Sweet Success". chicagotribune.com. 15 February 1987. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- ↑ "La colecta de Juan Carlos entre sus amigos ricos para pagar: Los Fanjul, los Albertos, Peter Dubens". 27 February 2021.
- ↑ "About Us - Tina Fanjul Associates Real Estate". fanjulrealestate.com. 30 December 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- ↑ Hofheinz, Darrell (13 September 2019). "Hurricane Dorian: Palm Beach's Fanjul family mounts Bahamian relief campaigns". Palm Beach Daily News. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
- ↑ "Sold Out: "Palm Beach Chic," a power panel discussion with Jennifer Ash Rudick, Lillian Fanjul Fernandez and Anne Fairfax - The Society of the Four Arts". www.fourarts.org. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- ↑ "Florida sugar companies now have a global presence". mypalmbeachpost.com. Archived from the original on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
- ↑ "Fashion Scoops: Turkish De-Light… Robert's Honor… New Couple". WWD. 2 May 2007. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
- ↑ "Raissa Enis, PA | Real Estate Agent". Douglas Elliman. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
- ↑ Norberg, Johan (2023). The Capitalist Manifesto: Why the Global Free Market Will Save the World. Atlantic Books Ltd. p. 140. ISBN 978-1-83895-7896.