 In the 1950s, Ferré's "Empresas Ferré" (Ferre Enterprises) acquired Puerto Rico Cement and Ponce Cement, which capitalized on the economic boom which Puerto Rico enjoyed based on the ambitious industrialization projects undertaken in association with the Operation Bootstrap.Ferré's brother, José, had moved to Miami with his family.His son Maurice expanded a successful business there, selling bagged pre-mixed cement and sand under the name Mezcla Lista.