Forbes: Jackson turns over K-J ownership

Jess Jackson, who built a wine empire that made him a mainstay on Forbes magazine's list of the richest people in the world, reportedly has restructured his vast holdings and is turning the Santa Rosa company over to new leadership.

Jackson, 81, the only resident of Sonoma County to make the Forbes list of billionaires, was missing from its latest roster Wednesday for the first time in a decade.

Jackson's family informed Forbes in January that the self-made billionaire no longer owns a stake in Kendall-Jackson or its parent company, Jackson Family Wines, said Clare O'Connor, a reporter with Forbes.

The magazine, which estimated Jackson's worth at $1.85 billion last September on its annual list of 400 wealthiest Americans, removed him from a subsequent index published Wednesday listing the world's billionaires.

“We dropped Jess Jackson because he informed us he no longer owns any interest in Kendall-Jackson Winery or Jackson Family Wines,” O'Connor said.

Jackson, who reportedly is battling cancer, did not respond to a request for comment placed with the company Thursday.

His wife, Barbara Banke, said Wednesday the Jackson family retains control of the privately held company and is undergoing a transition to new leaders who will ensure Kendall-Jackson remains a central force in Sonoma County.

“We like Sonoma County and unlike a lot of businesses, we're here to stay,” Banke said shortly before the Forbes list was released.

The company's president, Rick Tigner, will be transitioning into the position of chief executive officer, Banke said.

Current CEO Don Hartford, Jackson's son-in-law, will serve on the board of directors.

With his new post, Hartford will help represent the family ownership of the winery and provide strategic direction, said Banke, who also serves on the board. A highly skilled advisory panel will provide counsel to the board, she said.

“Don and I and the kids and the tremendous support we have in the community, along with our work force, our family of employees, will continue to be a tremendous force in the community,” Banke said.

The company did not respond to several requests for comment Thursday on Jackson's removal from the Forbes list or its report that he no longer owns a stake in Kendall-Jackson or Jackson Family Wines.

An intensely private man, Jackson said the Forbes calculations exaggerated his personal wealth when he first made the billionaires' list in 2000. At the time, he was slowly turning over his extensive wine holdings, transferring ownership to his family, company executives and charitable foundations.

“I doubt if I have 10 or 15 percent” of the family's wine holdings, Jackson said in 2000. “Nobody should perceive me as sitting here with that kind of money.”

Jackson gave retirement a shot in 2000 but it didn't take. In 2003, at 73, he was back at the helm as chief executive.

Also that year, he began investing more than $200 million in creating a thoroughbred horse-racing operation. Stonestreet Stables made headlines this week when it announced Rachel Alexandra, his 2009 Horse of the Year, was pregnant from mating with two-time Horse of the Year winner Curlin.

“Imagine what possibilities those two super horses might produce,” Jackson said, referring to the mating of the horses last month, in a statement that identified him as the owner of Kendall-Jackson Wine Estates.

Jackson survived a bout with skin cancer in 2009 after undergoing chemotherapy, but the cancer has returned, according to sources close to the company who spoke on condition of anonymity. In January, he was absent from a ceremony at UC Davis to celebrate the opening of a research and teaching complex that was partially funded by Jackson and Banke.

Banke declined to discuss Jackson's health.

While best known for his flagship line of Kendall-Jackson wines, Jackson built a global company that includes nearly two dozen properties in California, France, Italy, Chile and Australia. It produces about 5 million cases of wine annually under a roster of brands that include La Crema, Arrowood, Stonestreet, Cambria, Murphy-Goode, Matanzas Creek and Freemark Abbey.

Banke said the family has no intention of selling its primary assets.

“We're interested in preserving our family business,” she said. “Possibly if we want to trade up a vineyard, but otherwise we're not looking to sell. We're certainly not looking to sell off anything major.”

Tigner has been with the company for nearly two decades and was promoted to president last May. At that time he reported directly to Jackson, then CEO and chairman, according to the San Francisco Business Times.

Hartford, a former attorney, is married to Jackson's daughter, Jennifer Jackson-Hartford. He has served in a variety of roles at the company over the last two decades and currently is president of Hartford Family Wines, which he owns with his wife and her sister, Laura Jackson-Giron, according to the company's website.

Looking ahead, Banke said her two daughters, Katie, 25, and Julie, 23, already are working for Jackson Family Wines in public relations and marketing. Her son, Christopher, 21, will graduate this year from Santa Clara University, and he plans to take a year off before going to law school.

“All three kids are interested in the wine business,” Banke said. “They've grown up with it. Katie planted a small vineyard ... they've known the business from the ground up and they like it.”