All you need to know about Tilman Fertitta
Tilman Fertitta is a wealthy businessman and television personality from the United States with a net worth of $9 billion. Tilman Fertitta is the CEO, chairman, and owner of Landry’s, Inc., as well as the owner of the Houston Rockets of the NBA. Fertitta appeared in the CNBC reality series “Billion Dollar Buyer.”
Who is Tilman Fertitta?
Tilman Fertitta was born in Galveston, Texas in 1957. Vic, his father, had a seafood restaurant on Galveston Island. Fertitta received his higher education at Texas Tech University and the University of Houston. He studied business administration and hospitality management but did not complete his degree.
Fertitta is the CEO, chairman, and owner of Landry’s, Inc., as well as the owner of the Houston Rockets of the NBA. Fertitta appeared in the CNBC reality series “Billion Dollar Buyer.”
Former UFC owners Frank Fertitta and Lorenzo Fertitta are Tilman’s third cousins. Tilman Fertitta agreed to buy the Houston Rockets from Leslie Alexander for $2.2 billion in September 2017. At the time, it was a record amount paid for an NBA team. The Rockets are now valued $4.4 billion.
In 1991, Tilman attempted to purchase the Rockets for $81 million. Leslie Alexander, who offered $85 million, beat him to the deal. Tilman is a former Houston Texans minority owner. Interestingly, gamblers at Tilman’s casinos will NOT be able to wager on Houston Rockets games according to league gambling rules.
How old is Tilman Fertitta?
He is currently 66 years old.
What is Tilman Fertitta’s net worth?
The American billionaire businessman is estimated to be worth $9 Billion.
What is Tilman Fertitta’s career?
Fertitta started his business selling Shaklee supplements. He formed and led a building and development company in the 1980s, through which he built the Key Largo Hotel in Galveston.
Fertitta was a co-owner of the first Landry’s restaurant, Landry’s Seafood, which debuted in Katy, Texas, in 1980. The following year, he assisted in the opening of Willie G’s Seafood & Steaks in Houston. Fertitta took over as CEO of Landry’s in late 1986 after acquiring controlling shares in both businesses.
In 1993, he went public and began a period of rapid expansion. Landry’s evolved and purchased not only additional restaurants, but also entertainment, gambling, and hotel businesses over the decade. The business purchased the 32-acre San Luis Resort on Galveston Island in 1996 and built the Kemah Boardwalk, a theme park, in 1998.
In the 2000s, Landry acquired Rainforest Cafe, Saltgrass Steak House, Muer Restaurants, Golden Nugget Hotel & Casinos, and the Hilton Galveston Island Resort. The Downtown Aquarium, a Houston entertainment attraction, debuted in 2003.
Landry’s purchased three new restaurant brands in 2010: Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, Claim Jumper, and the Oceanaire. The next year, the company added two more restaurants to its portfolio: McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants and Morton’s The Steakhouse. Landry’s opened the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier in 2012.
Later in the decade, B.R. Guest, Restaurants Unlimited, and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steak Houses were acquired. Landry’s also repurchased Joe’s Crab Shack, which it had previously sold in 2006. Meanwhile, the business began developing and acquiring Landry’s Signature Group of restaurants, which includes Grotto, Brenner’s Steakhouse, La Griglia, and Vic & Anthony’s. Landry’s other properties include Houston’s Post Oak Hotel & Tower and San Antonio’s Tower of the Americas.
Fertitta was one of the founding investors in the Houston Texans when they were founded in 1999. He remained a partner of Texans owner Bob McNair until 2008 when he sold his stake. Later, in 2017, Fertitta paid an NBA record $2.2 billion for the Houston Rockets. He also became the owner of the professional esports organization Clutch Gaming as a result of the transaction.
Fertitta starred in his own reality television series, “Billion Dollar Buyer,” which debuted on CNBC in 2016. Each episode followed Fertitta as he traversed the country sampling innovative hospitality goods that he may potentially implement for his Landry’s locations. He would meet with small business owners to evaluate if their commodities would be suitable with his company, and if so, he would offer them a bargain. “Billion Dollar Buyer” lasted three seasons, ending in 2018.
Fertitta serves on several boards in the Houston region. He is the chairman of the board of the Houston Children’s Charity and a member of the University of Houston System’s board of regents. Fertitta also serves on the boards of the Texas Heart Institute, the Greater Houston Partnership, and the Houston Museum of Fine Arts.
Fertitta’s charitable contributions have primarily benefited the University of Houston. In 2016, he gave the school $20 million to renovate Hofheinz Pavilion, a multifunctional arena dubbed the Fertitta Center. Later, in 2022, he made a $50 million gift to the university’s medical school, which was renamed the Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine.
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