Melly Barajas is known as the “queen of tequila.”
The 60-year-old founder and head distiller of Leyenda de Mexico was an aspiring fashion designer when her father planted the idea of owning a tequila brand in her head. As she started learning everything she could about making tequila, she was often the only woman in the room. In the 25 years since Leyenda’s founding as one of the first female-owned tequila companies, it has expanded to produce 20,000 liters of tequila daily.
Barajas, who was recently named to the Forbes 50 Over 50: Global list, runs an all-female operation. “I really think this industry needed the female touch,” she told Forbes’ Maria Gracia Santillana Linares.
FIRST UP
The House approved a budget resolution Tuesday that lays the framework for President Donald Trump’s agenda, the first major test of the new Congress. The plan calls for $2 trillion in overall spending cuts over the next decade, extends Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and boosts defense spending.
Trump told reporters Tuesday his administration plans to sell a “gold card” for $5 million that will provide wealthy non-citizens U.S. residency and a route to citizenship, an announcement that comes as he spearheads a mass deportation initiative. He said the card will give buyers the same privileges as green card holders, who have permanent residency and work authorizations in the U.S.
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BUSINESS + FINANCE
Tesla’s share price fell more than 8% Tuesday following reports that the company’s sales across Europe dropped by about 45% over the last month—despite rival electric-vehicle companies seeing increased demand. The losses caused CEO Elon Musk’s net worth to plummet by almost $15 billion, as his role in the Trump Administration weighs on shares, according to one analyst.
Investors are eagerly awaiting Nvidia’s Wednesday’s earnings report, which will provide early indications of how it will emerge following the release of the less tech-intensive DeepSeek AI model from China. Ahead of the report, the AI giant’s stock fell 2.8% Tuesday, amid a broader pullback of tech stocks.
MONEY + POLITICS
At least 21 former staffers of the U.S. Digital Service, which was renamed the Department of Government Efficiency in a takeover by President Donald Trump, resigned Tuesday. The anonymous staffers wrote in a letter that they would not “use our skills as technologists” to “compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services.”
Donald Trump Jr. made $813,000 in 2024 as a director of Trump Media & Technology Group—roughly a quarter of the company’s annual revenue—despite attending just two of the board’s five meetings, according to an SEC filing. Trump Jr. controls 52% of the outstanding shares of the parent company of Truth Social, as the sole trustee of his father’s revocable trust.
WORLD
Ukraine reportedly agreed Tuesday to partner with the U.S. on a mineral development deal, possibly mending a contentious relationship between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as Trump seeks a ceasefire with Russia. The deal involves Ukraine and the U.S. jointly developing Ukrainian minerals, oil and gas, according to Bloomberg, which noted the agreement does not include security guarantees for Ukraine.
TRENDS + EXPLAINERS
A growing coalition of Republicans are starting to speak out against DOGE and its mass layoffs across the federal workforce, including Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins, and Georgia Rep. Richard McCormick. Several Republicans have been confronted by constituents about DOGE at recent town halls, though President Donald Trump has insisted Americans “like the job that Elon is doing.”
MORE: White House officials confirmed that Amy Gleason, a longtime healthcare technology executive, is now the acting administrator of DOGE, following weeks of speculation over whether Elon Musk was officially in charge. Gleason previously worked in the U.S. Digital Service during Trump’s first term.
DAILY COVER STORY
Why This Film Financing Company Is The Safest Bet In Hollywood
TOPLINE For decades, taking big swings on ambitious independent film projects has been a seductive and highly risky investment strategy in Hollywood. Sunday’s Academy Awards ceremony will celebrate the best of these success stories, but each year there are many more fortunes lost than trophies won.
BondIt has differentiated itself since its founding in 2013 by lowering the risk, attracting institutional money and providing more dependable returns with its low stakes, high volume approach on movies that will never score millions at the box office or contend for Oscars. The company does have one nomination, but the vast majority of the 500-plus films BondIt has financed are the types of low-budget genre flicks that skip theatres and go straight to streaming services and TV networks across the world.
The company builds its loans against predictable, projectable returns, such as the money a production receives back in tax credits for filming in a certain state or country, or its pre-sales in international markets. Other factors are less black-and-white, like a filmmakers’ ability to deliver a movie on time, the quality of the project’s sales team and how much equity capital has already been raised.
BondIt movies might be less glamorous, but they deliver consistent returns. In any given 12-month window, BondIt invests in 50 or more films and turns over more than $100 million in capital—a metric the company measures as its revenue—writing off less than 1% in bad loans and delivering 15-20% returns.
WHY IT MATTERS “In a time where movie studios and streamers are contracting and looking to cut costs, it would seem like there’s a place in the entertainment industry for more independents to break through,” says Forbes reporter Matt Craig. “The only problem—independent movies are historically a very risky business. If BondIt can prove otherwise, it may be able to attract big institutional money to the space, and fund the kinds of movies that the studios no longer make.”
MORE Why Hollywood Is Bearish On The Future Of Television
FACTS + COMMENTS
Starbucks has had its ups and downs, but lately, it’s been mostly downs, as the company reported basically flat 2024 revenues and announced 1,100 corporate job cuts Monday. The company’s brand reputation is also declining, data shows:
4%: Starbucks’ decline in comparable store sales in the first quarter of 2025
No. 45: The coffee chain’s ranking in a recent Brand Finance report of the most valuable global brands, plunging from No. 15 in 2024
57.7: The number of points Starbucks’ reputation had on a 100-point index, declining from 71.5 points in 2021, according to Reptrak
STRATEGY + SUCCESS
If you’re networking but still not landing job offers, that could be because you’re not meeting with the right people. While it’s important to network with employees at all levels, be sure to focus on the gatekeepers who influence or make hiring decisions. Smart networking is also a numbers game: Companies aren’t always hiring, so try to keep in touch with hiring managers and you’ll be top of mind when an opportunity opens up.
VIDEO
QUIZ
A consumer activist group is launching a grassroots campaign to boycott online and in-store spending Friday in an attempt to “take back control of our economy, government and future of our country.” It’s also planning specific protests against which of the following retailers?
A. Nestlé
B. Amazon
C. Walmart
D. All of the above
Check your answer.
Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire and Chris Dobstaff.