What is your full name?
Joseph Jack Cayre
What is your date of birth?
August 1, 1941.
Where did you grow up?
I was born in Brooklyn on 20th Avenue and 65th Street [on the
border of Bensonhurst and Borough Park]. When I was 1, we moved to
Kansas City, Mo. I was there from 1 to 8 years old. From 8 to 20 years
old, I was in Miami Beach, Fla.
When you think of your childhood, what memory stands out the most?
Moving from Kansas City to Miami. It was a traumatic experience. I left all my friends in Missouri.
What was your first job ever?
Working in my father’s retail store in Miami Beach. I was 13. I got
out of school at 3. I got to the store at 4. It was open until 10. We
sold Miami Beach souvenirs.
Did you have to work or was it something you wanted to do?
We had to work to eat — me, my brother and my dad — and we barely
made a living. Things were so tough in the store that I worked as a
bellhop at the National Hotel in South Beach.
To what do you attribute your success?
Learning in a retail store. You would sell a lot of stuff, but you were really selling yourself.
Did you graduate from college?
I enrolled in the University of Miami but I never went there because I was a playboy. I went out with girls all day long.
When and why did you get into real estate?
Eleven years ago. When I grew up in Miami Beach, the nicest home
sold when I was a senior in high school for $100,000. I saw that house
sell for $38 million about 11 years ago.
Where do you live?
Central Park South.
Do you have any other homes?
In Brooklyn, the Jersey Shore and Aventura, Fla. We spend half the
week here, half the week in Brooklyn. We spend the summertime on the
Jersey Shore and the wintertime in Aventura.
Why do you have a home in Brooklyn when you have an apartment in Manhattan?
My kids live there.
How long have you been married?
Thirty-seven years. She’s the love of my life. I love her more every day.
What’s the trick to staying married that long?
Resolve everything before you go to sleep and don’t [be afraid to say] you’re sorry.
How many kids do you have?
Four sons and one daughter.
Do they work for you?
My sons are all equal partners with me. I gave them all an equal
share of every company. My daughter just graduated Barnard College and
is taking her masters at Columbia University.
What are the challenges of working with your family? [In
the beginning it was] to keep all of them happy, to keep all of them
from fighting with each other. It took a couple of years, but we got it
down. We have five different skill sets.
What is yours?
Experience. I’ve been there before.
What do you think is the fastest way to make it rich?
Don’t do it the fastest way. Try to do it the slow and steady way.
Do you cook?
I do cook.
What did you make this week?
Vegetarian curry noodle soup [minus the noodles]. I copied [restaurant] Zen Palate’s recipe.
Are you and your wife vegetarians?
No. I’m seeing a nutritionist to lose weight.
How many pounds do you want to lose?
Twelve.
You were a bidder for the General Motors Building at 767 Fifth Avenue. Are you happy that you didn’t win it? [Mort Zuckerman’s Boston Properties acquired the building for a record $2.8 billion in June.]
I’m delighted. I was as high as the selling price and then I backed
out. I just didn’t like the returns. I like to make money on all my
deals. I think that [in the General Motors deal] initially you’d lose
your arm.
