Fernández born into a family made up of 13 children, emigrated to Mexico in 1949, when he was 32. He went on to become the CEO of Grupo Modelo, the brewery company who make Corona beer - a bottled beer in the United States, with annual sales of $693million (£556million).
Fernández was a well-known philanthropist who never forgot his motherland and was honoured by the former King of Spain, Juan Carlos, for his charitable deeds, including his work with disabled young people.