The Firm

A family office built on four decades of building and operating.

Phillips Equities & Trust oversees Phillips Development & Realty and manages the Phillips family's broader investments, trusts and holdings from its headquarters in Dorado, Puerto Rico.

Our history

From real estate developer to multi-strategy family office.

Don Phillips has worked in real estate since he was 19. He entered the business full-time in 1986, structured medical office development programs across the Southeast with Hock Development, and in 1999 founded Phillips Development & Realty (PDR) as a multifamily rental developer. PDR moved its headquarters from Raleigh to Tampa in 2003.

Over more than two decades, PDR has developed more than 5,000 multifamily units along with office, retail, medical and municipal facilities totaling more than $700 million, from the one-million-square-foot Mosaic development in Houston to Sur Club in St. Petersburg. After the 2008 downturn, the firm refocused on fewer, larger mixed-use projects and climate-controlled self-storage.

In 2020, Don founded Woodie's Wash Shack, which grew into one of Tampa Bay's most recognizable express car wash brands before its 2026 acquisition by Back Nine Equity, parent of Links Car Wash.

Phillips Equities & Trust is the family office through which that capital is now invested, well beyond real estate: in private operating companies, pre-IPO and late-stage private companies, public micro-cap and international equities, a systematic options program and liquidity management. Phillips Development & Realty continues as one of its holdings.

The Dorado office serves as the firm's headquarters and the home base for a growing portfolio of Puerto Rico–domiciled entities and investments.

How we operate

What partners can expect from us.

Our own balance sheet

We invest proprietary family capital only. There are no outside investors to consult and no fund cycle driving the exit.

Clear, quick answers

Stated criteria, a structured intake and a disciplined screen, so we can say yes or no quickly and explain why.

Flexible structures

We can lead, co-invest or joint venture, as principal, as a minority partner, or as preferred equity alongside a sponsor.

Operators, not just allocators

Our principals have developed real estate, built and sold companies, and run a public company. We know what a business plan looks like on the ground.

Long-term relationships

We would rather do several deals with a strong sponsor over a decade than one deal at the top of a cycle.

Rooted in Puerto Rico

Headquartered in Dorado, we invest across the U.S. mainland and in Puerto Rico, and we know the island's business community.

Leadership

The team

Donald E. "Don" Phillips

Founder & Chairman

Don Phillips has spent four decades in real estate development. After entering the business in 1986, he structured medical office development programs throughout the Southeast with Hock Development, Inc., then founded Phillips Development & Realty in 1999, relocating its headquarters from Raleigh to Tampa in 2003.

He has developed more than 5,000 multifamily units along with office, retail, medical and municipal facilities totaling more than $700 million, including Phillips University Center in Charlotte, Phillips International in Tampa, Phillips at McKinney Ranch in Texas, the one-million-square-foot Mosaic mixed-use development in Houston and Sur Club in St. Petersburg.

Don also founded Woodie's Wash Shack, which grew into one of Tampa Bay's most recognizable express car wash brands before its 2026 acquisition by Back Nine Equity, LLC, parent company of Links Car Wash, creating a platform of approximately 50 locations across four states. He retains ownership of the Woodie's brand through a newly formed brand management company.

His public service includes three gubernatorial appointments in Florida, among them Vice Chair of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority and board member of Enterprise Florida.

Charlie Maddox

President & Chief Investment Officer

Charlie Maddox brings more than two decades of leadership across military aviation, entrepreneurship and corporate finance. He co-founded and serves as Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Dot Ai (Nasdaq: DAIC), a publicly traded IoT and AI-driven SaaS company that provides asset intelligence for industrial supply chains.

A serial entrepreneur, he previously co-founded FedVan, which built employer commuting programs and provided wheelchair transportation for disabled veterans, and led the company for more than a decade before selling it in a private transaction. He also co-founded Enzymatic, Inc., a developer of industrial enzymes for self-healing, carbon-negative concrete.

He began his career in the U.S. Air Force, where from 2004 to 2014 he was an instructor pilot in the C-17A and MQ-1B and flew more than 1,200 combat and combat-support hours over Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. As Wing Airlift Director at McChord Air Force Base, he managed the worldwide operations of 51 aircraft representing $11.12 billion in assets. He went on to serve as Flight Commander, Chief of Training, Chief of Safety and Director of Operations across five deployments.

He holds an M.B.A. from Worcester Polytechnic Institute and a bachelor's degree in Computer Science from Florida State University.

Pablo Llano

Executive Administrator

Pablo Llano oversees the firm's day-to-day administration, executive briefings and corporate communications, supporting the founder and the Phillips family's growing roster of Puerto Rico–based entities. He joined Phillips Equities & Trust in August 2026 from Accelerant, where he served as Execution Lead.

He holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.