How Tajín's Founder Turned His Mexican Seasoning Into A $1.5 Billion Spice Giant

Forbes

Surrounded by the mountains of Jalisco, Mexico, the entrance to the 20-acre manufacturing headquarters of chili spice maker Industrias Tajín features a half-mile-long driveway lined with Montezuma Bald Cypress trees. Halfway there, it wraps around a massive molcajete, a mortar and pestle weighing 70,000 pounds made from a single piece of volcanic rock. Three giant flags, 26 feet long by 13 feet tall, fly over the glass headquarters. One has the Tajín logo with its signature chili pepper substituting for the i. In the center is the Mexican flag. And to the left is the Stars and Stripes.  To see such a huge symbol of America a thousand miles south of Houston is somewhat disorienting. Unless you know the backstory.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2025/02/18/tajin-founder-horacio-fernandez-interview-billionaire-hspice-family/  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00Today on Forbes, meet Mexico's first Chilean heir.

00:06Surrounded by the mountains of Jalisco, Mexico,

00:09the entrance to the 20-acre manufacturing headquarters

00:11of Chile's spice maker, Industrias Tajin,

00:15features a half-mile-long driveway

00:17lined with Montezuma bald cypress trees.

00:20Halfway there, it wraps around a massive molcajete,

00:24a mortar and pestle weighing 70,000 pounds

00:27made from a single piece of volcanic rock.

00:30Three giant flags, 26 feet long by 13 feet tall,

00:34fly over the glass headquarters.

00:36One has the Tajin logo with its signature chili pepper

00:40substituting for the eye.

00:42In the center is the Mexican flag,

00:44and to the left is the stars and stripes.

00:47To see such a huge symbol of America

00:491,000 miles south of Houston is somewhat disorienting,

00:53unless you know the backstory.

00:55Horacio Fernandez, the 66-year-old founder

00:59and CEO of Tajin, explains, quote,

01:02"'The American Dream' motivated me.

01:04You build the business with your work,

01:05with your mind, with your innovation.

01:08In Mexico, it's difficult."

01:11Fernandez created the seasoning blend

01:1340 years ago in his kitchen,

01:15taking cues from what his grandmother used,

01:17with the goal of selling genuine Mexican flavors

01:20in the U.S. market.

01:21It was an audacious plan in an era

01:23when some American supermarkets

01:25didn't even stock jalapenos,

01:27and Chi-Chi's, founded in Minneapolis,

01:30was among the country's most popular

01:32so-called Mexican restaurants.

01:35He succeeded by creating a Mexican product

01:37aimed squarely at Americans

01:39while simultaneously helping preserve,

01:41through commercialization, a heritage pepper,

01:44key to Mexico's national identity,

01:47Chile de Arbol de Jalisco,

01:49featured in Tajin's logo.

01:51Some 40 million pounds of Tajin

01:53is now sold in America annually,

01:55much of it at Walmart,

01:57according to the cowboy hat-wearing Fernandez,

01:59who rarely gives interviews.

02:02The U.S. is the engine

02:03behind the brand's cult-like following,

02:05making up 60% of its business.

02:08Forbes pegs annual revenue for Industrias Tajin

02:11at $300 million,

02:13with gross margins of as high as 70%

02:16and net margins of 30%.

02:19We estimate the business to be worth $1.5 billion.

02:23Fernandez, who started the company in 1985,

02:26and his brother, Aldo, who joined 11 years later,

02:29own nearly all of it.

02:32Sergio Arias, a banker who became CFO in 1996,

02:36has 3%.

02:38Since 2020, Tajin has grown sales

02:40at a compound rate of 15%,

02:42some three times faster

02:44than the overall $7 billion U.S. spices category.

02:48Fernandez says Tajin,

02:50which has been licensed by brands ranging from Taco Bell

02:53to Hellman's Mayonnaise,

02:54has been wooed by Nestle, Conagra, Unilever, and Kraft.

02:59Yet he hasn't been tempted to sell.

03:02Fernandez, who spent some of his wealth

03:04on a school celebrating traditional Mexican ceramics,

03:07as well as a colonial-era hacienda

03:09built in Jalisco in 1564,

03:11purchased in 2021 for events,

03:13says, quote,

03:15It's not about the money.

03:17Matt Leeds, who founded Forward Consumer Partners

03:20after having led the deal for McCormick

03:22to buy Cholula hot sauce in 2020

03:25at private equity shop El Caterton,

03:27says that Tajin is, quote,

03:32He adds, quote,

03:33The brand is underexposed.

03:35There are not many companies this scaled, this profitable,

03:38with strong brands, their own manufacturing,

03:41and independently held.

03:44When McCormick,

03:45the $6 billion in sales seasoning behemoth

03:47behind Frank's Red Hot and Old Bay,

03:50acquired Cholula,

03:51it spent 10 times revenue for a total of $800 million.

03:55Since then, deals in spice brands have ranged a bit lower,

03:59from four to eight times sales.

04:01Last year, Siete Family Foods,

04:03the corn-free chip maker

04:05that expanded into seasonings and hot sauce,

04:07was acquired by PepsiCo for $1.2 billion,

04:11or more than four times sales.

04:14Tajin grew through grit.

04:16Fernandez was raised in Guadalajara,

04:19one of seven kids of a wealthy gasoline entrepreneur,

04:22but he wanted to strike out on his own.

04:24Without help from his father,

04:26he started more than 20 small businesses,

04:28hawking everything from leather goods to candy.

04:31Each one failed,

04:32but Fernandez kept looking for the idea that would take off.

04:36While selling beans and rice,

04:38he attended a food trade show in Chicago.

04:40There, in 1980, he had an epiphany.

04:44He would bring chilies to the masses.

04:48For full coverage,

04:48check out Chloe Sorvino's piece on Forbes.com.

04:53This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.

04:56Thanks for tuning in.

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