The Trump Organization is the collective name of a group of approximately 500 business entities of which U.S. President Donald Trump is the sole or principal owner. Around 250 use the Trump name.
It was originated in 1923 by Trump's grandmother and father as Elizabeth Trump & Son. From 1971 to 2017, Donald Trump ran the organization as chairman and president.
The Trump Organization, through its varies constituent companies and partnerships, has or has had interests in real estate development, investing, brokerage, sales and marketing, and property management. Trump Organization entities own, operate, invest in, and develop residential real estate, hotels, resorts, residential towers, and golf courses in various countries, as well as prime Manhattan real estate.. They also have or have operated in construction, hospitality, entertainment, book and magazine publishing, broadcast media, model management, retail, financial services, food and beverages, business education, online travel, commercial and private aviation and beauty pageants. Trump Organization entities also own a New York television production company that produced the reality television franchise The Apprentice. Retail operations include or have included fashion apparel, jewelry and accessories, books, home furnishings, lighting products, bath textiles and accessories, bedding, home fragrance products, small leather goods, barware, steaks, chocolate bars, and bottled spring water.
Trump Organization entities have divested from a several properties that continue to bear his name as marketing. For example, in February 2016, Trump sold his stake in Trump Entertainment Resorts, which owns the Trump Taj Mahal, the Trump Plaza, and the Trump Marina casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Since October 2016, Trump Organization entities have begun to develop properties under the name Scion Hotels, which are priced lower and are marketed towards younger customers.
History
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Founding and early history
Elizabeth Christ Trump, grandmother of Donald Trump, founded Elizabeth Trump & Son in 1923 with her son Fred Trump who was 18 at the time. Elizabeth and her husband Frederick Trump had moved to the borough of Queens in 1906 where her husband began developing real estate. In 1918, however, he died of influenza leaving an estate valued at $31,359 ($492,016 in 2016 dollars).
According to Gwenda Blair, author of the 2001 book The Trumps: Three Generations That Built an Empire, Elizabeth had a "remarkable talent" for keeping the real estate business going after her husband's death. She had a local contractor build houses on an empty piece of property they owned, sold the houses, and lived off the mortgage and rental proceeds paid by the new owners. Her vision was to have her three children continue the family business when they finished school, but her middle son, Fred, wanted to start earlier. She founded the company "Elizabeth Trump & Son" to give him his start. Since he was under age, she signed all legal documents. Fred eventually became a successful real estate developer himself but Elizabeth would remain involved throughout her life. Even in her 70s, she would collect coins from the laundromats in the Trump buildings.
Leadership under Donald Trump
Donald Trump worked for Elizabeth Trump & Son while attending the University of Pennsylvania, and in 1968 officially joined the company. He was given control of the company in 1971 and, in one of his first acts, renamed the company The Trump Organization.
Trump presidency
Donald Trump relinquished his role as chairman and president of the Trump Organization after being elected as U.S. President. His two adult children and three others stayed on as key executives.
On January 11, 2017, Trump announced that he and his daughter Ivanka would resign all roles within The Trump Organization, while his two oldest sons Donald Jr. and Eric would remain to run the various businesses along with existing Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg.
Trump retained his financial stake in the business, despite having offered during the campaign to put all his assets in a "blind trust" should he win the presidency. His attorney at the time, Sheri Dillon, stated that Trump's assets would be overseen by an ethics officer, and that the Trump Organization will not pursue any new foreign business deals.
Under the pre-inaugural management agreement, Forbes magazine reported in March 2017:
The Trump Organization has curtailed some of its international work, pulling out of deals in Azerbaijan, Georgia and Brazil, while pledging to do no new foreign deals (though it has apparently resurrected an old deal in the Dominican Republic). Trump’s international hotel licensing and management business only makes up $220 million of his estimated $3.5 billion fortune, but it’s the most dynamic part of the Trump portfolioâ€"and it throws off chunks of cash with virtually no risk. As the Trumps have wound down some international deals, they continue to push forward with new domestic agreements.
Eric Trump, in the Forbes article, discussed the "clear separation of church and state that we maintain" between the business and his father and said that with his father's U.S. Presidency and related changes "[y]ou could look at it either way" in terms of business prospects. He also said that "he will continue to update his father on the business while he is in the presidency ... 'probably quarterly ... profitability reports and stuff like that'". The article quoted Larry Noble, general counsel of the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center and a former chief ethics officer at the Federal Election Commission, and President George W. Bush’s former chief ethics lawyer, Richard Painter, as looking negatively at such multiple planned updates of President Trump per year. Noble said in part "if he is now going to get reports from his son about the businesses, then he really isn’t separate in any real way†and Painter said in part "at the end of the day, he owns the business. He has the conflicts that come with it.â€
Also in March 2017, Forbes did a listing of all "36 mini-Trumps", as it termed the domestic and international partnersâ€"often described as "billionaires"â€"with whom The Trump Organization has worked over the years. Introducing the listing, the magazine reported that at least 14 of the partners attended the President's inauguration and some of them paid for $18,000-a-night accommodations at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C. for the event.
Real estate
As of 2015, it is estimated that Trump's real estate holdings were worth about US$3.5 billion with a value of commercial properties totaled at US$1.3 billion, his residential properties at US$410 million, and his club facilities at US$866 million, and an additional US$940 million for properties he has less than 100% stake in. Trump's real estate holdings form the core of his assets and provide much of his income, with a wide array of real estate licensing, branding and marketing deals and royalties that provide millions in annual cash flow. As of 2005 Trump-branded condominiums in New York City sold for 36% more than comparable properties, according to the Corcoran Group. In 2015, Trump earned $71 million from condo sales and collects $41.9 million in rental income on his buildings annually.
Selected completed properties
- Trump Tower, 725 Fifth Avenue, Midtown Manhattan: A 58-story mixed-use tower, the headquarters of the Trump Organization, now 100% leased, was developed by a business partnership between the Trump Organization and the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States in 1983. Trump retains full control of the commercial and retail components of the tower. In 2006, it was valued at $318 million, less a $30 million mortgage. The total value of Trump Tower's commercial and retail spaces is $460 million. The building was refinanced for $100 million in August 2012, allowing Trump to take a cash distribution of over $73 million.
- Personal Residence Trump Tower: Top 3 floors of Trump Tower with approximately 30,000 square feet (3,000Â m2) of space; the triplex penthouse is decorated in diamond, 24-carat gold and marble, and features an interior fountain and a massive Italianate-style painting on the ceilings. Worth as much as $50 million, it is one of the most valuable apartments in New York City.
- Trump World Tower, 845 United Nations Plaza, also in Midtown Manhattan: In 2006, Forbes magazine estimated "$290 million in profits and unrealized appreciation" going to Trump.
- AXA Financial Center, 1290 Avenue of the Americas, New York City and 555 California Street, in San Francisco: When Trump was forced to sell a stake in the railyards on Manhattan's West Side, the Asian group to which he sold then sold much of the site for $1.76 billion. Trump owns a 30% stake in both 1290 Sixth Avenue and 555 California Street. A 43-story trophy office tower, 1290 Sixth is worth as much as $1.5 billion. Trump's stake is estimated to be $450 million. Trump's interest in 555 California Street is worth $400 million.
- The Trump Building at 40 Wall Street: Trump bought and renovated this building for $1 million in 1995. The pre-tax net operating income at the building as of 2011 was US$20.89 million and is valued at $350 to $400 million, according to the New York Department of Finance. Trump took out a $160 million mortgage attached to the property with an interest rate of 5.71% to use for other investments. Forbes valued the property at $260 million in 2006.
- Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago: The entire project is valued at $1.2 billion ($112 million stake for Trump).
- Trump International Hotel Las Vegas: A joint development with fellow Forbes 400 members, Phil Ruffin ("key partner"), and Jack Wishna ("minority partner"). In 2006, Trump's stake was estimated at $162 million. In Forbes in March 2017, the Trump International Las Vegas was described as a 50-50 partnership between Donald Sr. and Ruffin, with Eric as the primary manager for the Trump Organization.
- Trump International Hotel and Tower New York: Trump provided his name and expertise to the building's owner (GE) during the building's re-development in 1994 for a fee totaling $40 million ($25 million for project management and $15 million in incentives deriving from the condo sales). Forbes values Trump's stake at $12 million. In March 2010, the penthouse apartment at Trump International Hotel & Tower in New York City sold for $33 million.
- Trump Park Avenue Park Avenue & 59th Street: It is valued at $142 million. Trump owns 23 apartments at Trump Park Avenue, which he rents for rates as high as $100,000 per month, and 19 units at Trump Parc.
- Nike Store: The NikeTown store is located in Trump Tower. The leasehold valued at $200 million. Nike's lease in the building expires in 2017 and the building serves as collateral for bonds held by Trump worth $46.4 million.
- Palm Beach estate: A 43,000 square feet (4,000Â m2) large oceanfront mansion lot in Palm Beach. Trump purchased this property for $40 million at a bankruptcy auction in 2004. Trump sold the property for $100 million in June 2008, making it the most expensive house ever sold in the United States. (The previous record is $70 million for Ron Perelman's Palm Beach estate in 2004.). Forbes values his stake in the property for $43 million. Trump also owns two private homes in Palm Beach, Fla., adjacent to his Mar-a-Lago country club. Trump controls the two residential properties as real estate investments rather than vacation spots. The homes are worth around $6.5 million and $3 million.
- Mar-a-Lago Palm Beach, Florida: Most of this estate has been converted into a private club. This landmark property, according to Trump, has received bids near $200,000,000. However, Forbes magazine does not take into account either of Trump's large vacation residences (Mar-a-Lago or his 213-acre (0.86Â km2) spread near Bedford, NY in Westchester County, NY) for its valuation of his wealth. The property is worth as much as $250 million as of 2013.
- Seven Springs: A 213-acre estate located outside the town of Bedford in Westchester County. The building features a 13-bedroom mansion, but is also zoned to allow for the construction of 13 additional homes at the site. Trump paid $7.5 million for the entire property in 1995. Local Westchester County brokers put the property's value at around $40 million.
- Beverly Hills estate: A large mansion located on Rodeo Drive. The property is valued at $8.5 to $10 million.
- Trump International Hotel Washington, D.C.: The Old Post Office Pavilion, historically known as the Old Post Office and Clock Tower, is a property located at 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C. The Trump Organization developed the property into a luxury hotel, which opened in September 2016.
Carousel
Central Park Carousel: A merry-go-round carousel located in Central Park, Manhattan. In 2010, Trump took over the management of the Central Park carousel, where he promised to revive the merry-go-round after its previous operator was removed by the city's parks department. The carousel generates $589,000 from annual admissions.
Skating rink
Wollman Rink: A public ice rink in the southern part of Central Park. Wollman Rink has been operated by a joint venture between Trump Organization and Rink Management Services of Mechanicsville, Virginia since 2001. The Trump name is prominently displayed on the walls of the rink as well as on the Zamboni that maintains the rink. Operation of the Lasker Rink on the north edge of Central Park is also handled by the two companies. The rink generates close to $8.7 million in annual income from rink admissions.
Trump Winery
Trump Winery is a winery situated on Trump Vineyard Estates in Charlottesville, Virginia. It is valued between $5 million to $25 million.
The vineyard was purchased by Trump in April 2011 from Patricia Kluge, the widow of John Kluge. The property was distressed. and was officially opened in October 2011. Trump Winery is situated in the Monticello Wine Trail. Trump's son Eric was a partner in the purchase.
After purchasing the property, Trump turned over management of the winery to his son, Eric Trump. Trump has claimed be a "100%" owner of the winery, but the winery's website says in a legal disclaimer that Trump does not own the winery. The winery venture is a limited liability corporation, and "its owners are not a matter of public record." Although the vineyard is 1,300 acres, only 200 are under cultivation ("Acres under vine"). Contrary to claims made by Trump, the winery is not the largest on the East Coast, nor even the largest in Virginia.
Golf courses
Trump earned at least $176.4 million from 15 golf courses in Scotland, in Ireland and across the United States' Eastern Seaboard â€" about 41% of the low-end estimate of his income since 2015.
United States
The Trump Organization currently owns seven golf courses in the United States: Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, VA, Trump National Golf Club Westchester in Briarcliff Manor, New York, Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump National Golf Club Charlotte in Mooresville, NC, Trump National Golf Club in Philadelphia and Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles. About $200 million in cash flow is derived annually from Trumps golf courses and resorts. Trumps resorts, country clubs and golf courses are estimated to be worth $1.57 billion.
In 2012, Trump bought the Doral Resort & Spa in South Florida out of bankruptcy for $150 million. The 800-acre property includes five golf courses, 700 hotel rooms, has a meeting and conference space, a 50,000-square-foot spa and an extensive retail component. Real estate experts estimate current value of the land alone at Doral could exceed $1 billion. Trump has a $125 million mortgage on the property. Since 2012, the Trump Organization has spent over $250 million in renovations.
International
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- Scotland
In 2006, Trump purchased a 1,400-acre (5.7 km2) plot just north of Aberdeen at Menie (Balmedie), Scotland, with the intention of turning it into a £1 billion golf resort and "the world's best golf course" capable of hosting world class events such as The Open Championship. There has been opposition from many people both locally and in other parts of Scotland and the UK, and negative reaction from a number of environmental groups, but the project continues.
The development plan for Trump International Golf Links, Scotland (TIGLS) included two 18-hole courses, a 5-star hotel, golf villas, holiday homes, and a golf academy. It was strongly supported by local business leaders but met opposition from local residents, campaigners and environmental groups anxious to preserve the 4,000-year-old sand dunes that are designated an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest). Though recommended for approval by Aberdeenshire Council officials the development was initially rejected by a local subcommittee of elected members. However it was subsequently approved following a controversial planning inquiry ordered by the Scottish Government in June 2008, at which Trump personally testified. Work began on the site in July 2010.
In March 2009, the Trump Organization had asked the Council to use its powers of compulsory purchase to acquire some areas of land at Balmedie not forming part of the original TIGLS site for which planning permission already existed. These included four family-owned properties. In response local campaigners established Tripping Up Trump, a movement aimed at protecting the families at Menie being threatened with eviction. When it emerged at the end of January 2011 that Queen guitarist Brian May had agreed to the use of the band's song "Bohemian Rhapsody" in a film highlighting the plight of the families, Trump appeared to deny in a media statement that there had ever been an eviction threat, declaring "we have no interest in compulsory purchase and have never applied for it."
In September 2011, the Trump Organization lodged a formal objection to the proposed construction of a wind farm off the Aberdeenshire coast not far from the site of the new hotel and luxury housing. Donald Trump also wrote personally to the First Minister of Scotland protesting mainly on aesthetic grounds at the proposed erection of offshore wind turbines, which he characterized as 'ugly'. His letter claimed that he was protesting on behalf of the Scottish people, 'not... merely for the benefit of Trump International Golf Links.' The Organization's subsequent lawsuit failed as did the appeal.
In 2011, a documentary directed by Anthony Baxter called You've Been Trumped was released, showing the situation of local residents adversely affected by the resort's construction. It contains footage of, among others, economists who query the benefits claimed for the local economy, environmentalists critical of the damage allegedly caused by the development and golfers who voice doubts about claims made for the resort by the Trump Organization. It also shows Anthony Baxter being arrested while filming by a Grampian Police officer; he was later released without charge. Baxter has been quoted as saying that Trump branded the film 'boring' and Baxter himself 'a fraud'. However, the film has won several awards including the Hamptons Film Festival Social Justice Award and the Maysles Brothers Award for best documentary at the Denver Film Festival.
Despite Trump's threat to withdraw any further investment in Scotland amid the wind turbine controversy, he later purchased the prestigious Turnberry resort in Ayrshire in April 2014.
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- Dubai
On December 8, 2014, in conjunction with DAMAC Properties the company announced the Trump World Golf Club, Dubai. DAMAC chairman and owner Hussain Sajwani launched the Trump International Golf Club in February 2017, with Donald Jr. and Eric Trump in attendance. A second Trump golf course is also under construction by DAMAC in Dubai, designed with help from Tiger Woods. At the press conference in early January 2017 about his business interests going forward, then-President-elect Trump said that Sajwani had proposed another $2 billion project in partnership with Trump. The President-elect said he had turned down the opportunity as he also said that the organization would be doing no new foreign deals while under his sons' and associate's management during his presidency.
On December 11, 2015, Donald Trump's name and likeness had apparently been removed from a billboard and a wall at the project; it remained on another wall however, which was reported as patrolled by security guards and police. This occurrence was hypothesized to be linked to Trump's suggestion the previous week that Muslims be banned from entry to the United States and his suggestion the previous month that mosques in the United States be monitored, similar to reaction in Turkey to the Trump Towers Istanbul project at the same time.
Real estate licensing
Many developers pay Donald Trump to market their properties and be the public face for their projects. For that reason, Trump does not own many of the buildings that display his name. According to Forbes, this portion of Trump's empire, actually run by his children, has valuation of $562 million. According to Forbes, there were 33 licensing projects under development including seven "condo hotels" (i.e. The seven Trump International Hotel and Tower developments). Trump has generated more than $74 million in real estate licensing deals and has $823.3 million worth of real estate in joint ventures.
- Manhattan:
- Trump Palace: 200 East 69th Street, New York, NY.
- Trump Parc and Trump Parc East: Two adjoining buildings on Central Park South on the southwest corner of The Avenue of the Americas. Trump Parc East is a 14-story apartment building and Trump Parc (the former Barbizon Plaza Hotel) is a 38-story condominium building.
- Trump Plaza: 167 East 61st Street, New York, NY (36-story, Y-shaped plan condominium building on the Upper East Side)
- 610 Park Avenue (Old Mayfair Hotel): Trump is helping with the construction and development of this property for Colony NorthStar.
- Trump SoHo: Hotel Condominium: A partnership with Bayrock Group to build a 42-story building in Soho. "Russian-born" Felix Sater was listed as an employee of Bayrock when the partnership was born. Sater had served time in prison for injuries he inflicted in a bar fight before the Soho partnership.
- New York City suburbs:
- Trump Bay Street: A 447-unit rental apartment building in Jersey City with the real estate development company, Kushner Properties and The KABR Group.
- Trump Plaza: An apartment tower located adjacent to Trump Bay Street.
- Trump Plaza: A 39-story luxury residence and hotel with retail space in Westchester County, NY with developer Louis R. Cappelli.
- Trump Tower at City Center: A 35-story condominium apartment building built in Westchester County, New York with developer Louis R. Cappelli.
- Trump Parc Stamford: A development in Stamford, Connecticut with F. D. Rich Company and Louis R. Cappelli.
- Trump Park Residences: A development in Shrub Oak, NY with Louis Cappelli.
- Florida:
- Trump International Hotel and Tower Fort Lauderdale: Anticipated completion was 2007. Trump "decided to pull his name from the marquee and end his agreement with the developers" in 2009 and the developers defaulted on a $139 million loan in 2010, leaving the building faced with foreclosure. In November 2010, Trump announced he was no longer affiliated with the project.
- Trump Towers Sunny Isles Beach (Sunny Isles Beach, Florida): An oceanfront condominium development consisting of three 271-unit towers with developer Dezer Properties.
- Trump Grande Ocean Resort and Residences: A three-building oceanfront enclave consisting of the Trump International Beach Resort and two residential condominium towers, the Trump Palace and Trump Royale, with developer Dezer Properties.
- Trump Hollywood, a 200-unit, 41-story condominium tower in Hollywood, Florida, developed by Jorge M. Pérez and The Related Companies. Announced in 2006 and began construction a year later. Opened in 2009 and foreclosed the following year, before selling out in 2012.
- Trump Tampa Bay: Cancelled project
- Other domestic:
- Trump Towers Atlanta: project foreclosed and cancelled.
- Trump Tower: empty lot in Philadelphia, filed for bankruptcy as of January 2013 to prevent imminent foreclosure.
- Trump International Hotel and Tower Waikiki Beach Walk: Completed in November 2009 with 462 hotel-condominium units.
- Trump International Hotel & Residence: was a proposed real estate development in Phoenix, Arizona.
- Trump International Hotel and Tower: New Orleans (Project slated to begin construction during the first quarter of 2007). "Declared dead in July 2011 after the location land was foreclosed on and sold at auction".
- Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago: Completed in early 2009 (Opened to public January 30, 2009). Cost of construction was approximately US$847 million.
- International:
- Elite Tower, Ramat Gan, Israel was a planned commercial real estate development slated to be the tallest building in Israel. Called the Trump Plaza Tower, Trump shelved the plans in 2007, when the site was sold on to Azorim for NIS 306.5 million. Trump purchased the site for $44 million.
- Trump International Hotel & Tower Lido Lake, West Java, Indonesia. Trump Hotels will be involved with the 700-hectare Lido Lake development, 1 hour from Bandung, Indonesia including a six-star luxury resort, 18-hole signature Ernie Els championship golf course, elite Lifestyle Country Club & Spa as well as a high-end residential offering including luxury villas and condominiums. The project will be the first of its kind in Asia and the first in Islam-majority country. One of the Trump Organization’s partners in Indonesia is Taslimson family and the other one, Tanoesoedibjo, is "building up a following as he mulls a presidential run", according to Forbes.
- Trump International Hotel & Tower Vancouver, Vancouver. A skyscraper under construction in Downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The 63-story, 188-metre-high (617Â ft), mixed-use tower is located at 1133 West Georgia Street, and has been completed in 2016. Trump Vancouver is the second tallest building in the city, after the Shangri-La tower located across West Georgia Street. The licensed tower in Vancouver is a project primarily of Donald Jr.'s with its builder, "Malaysian heir Joo Kim Tiah".
- Trump Towers Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey
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- Trump World Seoul, Korea: Which Trump received a licensing fee of $5 million to lend his name.
- Trump International Hotel and Tower Toronto, Toronto, Canada
- The Palm Trump International Hotel and Tower, Dubai
- Trump Ocean Club International Hotel and Tower, Panama
- Trump Ocean Resort Baja Mexico was a planned 3 tower, 25-story, 526 unit hotel condominium, San Diego. This project collapsed due to the project's failure to secure financing.
- Trump at Cap Cana will be located in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
- Trump Tower Manila, Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines: The brand name and mark under license. Anticipated completion is to be announced. Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte "appointed Trump partner Jose Antonio to serve as a special envoy to the United States just before Trump's November victory".
- Trump Tower, Mumbai, India. "Billionaire Mangal Lodha is developing a 75-story, 300 apartments luxust residential project called Trump Towers building while serving as a regional vice president of a major political party."
- Trump Towers Pune, India, built in association with Panchshil Realty in Pune's Kalyani Nagar area.
- Trump Towers, Gurugram, India is the largest super-luxury residential development in India with 1.25 million sq. ft. project near Golf Course Extension Road, which will be built by IREO alongside a retail complex for about Rs 1,000 crore.
- Trump Towers, Gurugram, India is the second project in Gurgaon tied up with developer M3M India to build a residential building in Gurgaon.
- Trump Towers Kolkata, India is the result of tie up with Unimark Group and Trump Organization to build a 38 floor 400,000 sq. ft. residential project near Eastern Metropolitan Bypass stretch, Kolkata.
- As of February 2017 in South America, the Trump Organization had one active project: the Trump Tower Punta del Este in Punta del Este, Uruguay. By that time, the company had ended its involvement with two projects in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: the partially built Trump Hotel Rio de Janeiro and the unbuilt Trump Towers Rio office complex. The company also dropped plans for another office project, the 35-story Trump Office Buenos Aires, which was to be built in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Paulo Figueiredo Filho partnered with the organization in Brazil and "worked mostly with the [Trump] children".
Stocks, bonds, funds, and similar holdings
The Trump Organization also houses Trump's personal financial market investment portfolio as a portion of Trump's wealth is concentrated in the financial and commodities markets. The investment portfolio generates income and cash flow from a variety of mechanisms as dividends, capital gains, and compounded carried interest. He invested a minimum of $70 million in stocks. Though real estate is still his most preferred asset class, Trump became an active financial market investor in 2011 following disappointment from depressed American real estate market and various investments in the Federal Reserve's interest yields on CDs were next to nothing. Trump stated that he was not enthusiastic to be a stock market investor, but that prime real estate at good prices was hard to find at that time and that stocks and equity securities were cheap and generating good cash flow from dividends. He profited from 40 of the 45 stocks he purchased which he sold in 2014, making it almost a 90% success rate in capital appreciation in addition to millions in earned dividends. The biggest gainers in his stock portfolio were Bank of America Corporation, The Boeing Company and Facebook, Inc earning a windfall profit of $6.7 million, $3.96 million and $3.85 million, respectively.
Trump's stock portfolio was valued somewhere between $33.4 million and $87.9 million in 2015 and was invested in many sectors, including public companies such as tobacco distributors, retail outlets, pharmaceutical companies, industrial manufacturing companies, financial conglomerates, oil companies, high technology firms and defense contractors. Public stock investments within his portfolio include General Electric, Chevron, UPS, Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Comcast, Sanofi, Ford, ConocoPhillips, Energy Transfer Partners, Altera, Verizon Communications, Procter & Gamble, Bank of America, Nike, Google, Apple Inc., Philip Morris, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley, Whole Foods, Intel, IBM, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Caterpillar, Kinder Morgan, AT&T and Facebook. He has at least $78 million invested in a variety of paper assets such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, private equity funds, fund of funds, and hedge funds. His financial market investment accounts are kept at JPMorgan, Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Oppenheimer. His Barclays account includes investments in 32 entities and cash worth between $49,021 and $396,001 and having stock in two accounts at Deutsche Bank that contain cash, treasury bills, and stock in 173 entities. His investment account with Oppenheimer contains cash and has 31 positions worth between $10,380,031 and $33,301,000. His account with JPMorgan contains stock in 60 firms valued between $1,251,008 and $2,617,000.
Trump has also invested in funds that focus on middle and smaller sized businesses such as Tesla Motors, the electric car maker and has invested internationally in a number of emerging market, growth and hedge funds located in Europe and Asia. He has also invested in a number of private equity and hedge funds including $1 to $5 million in Advantage Plus, $1 to $5 million in AG Diversified Funds, $2 million in MidOcean Credit Opportunities, $4 million in Paulson & Co., and around $5 million with Angelo, Gordon & Co.. Trump's biggest fund holding has been in Black Rock's Obsidian Fund, where his stake is estimated to be between $25 million to $50 million. Nearly all of Trump's open end mutual fund investments are concentrated in Baron Capital Management, a mid-sized mutual fund family headed by mutual fund mogul Ronald S. Baron. Trump invested $16.2 million in Baron Capital Management, making him a significant minority shareholder. He revealed that he earned over $22 million with his private equity, hedge fund, and mutual fund investments and generated between $1.5 million and $10 million in income almost all of it from investments such as dividends, capital gains, and carried interest. Trump also has a portion of his portfolio invested in U.S. Treasury bonds.
On a government form submitted in 2015, Trump reported holding an amount of physical gold, valued at between $100,001 to $250,000.
Other ventures and investments
Trump owns a wide variety of other enterprises outside real estate (which had an estimated 2013 value of US$317.6 million). Other investments include a 17.2% stake in Parker Adnan, Inc. (formerly AdnanCo Group), a Bermuda-based financial services holdings company. In late 2003 Trump and his siblings sold their late father's real-estate empire to a group of investors that included Bain Capital, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and LamboNuni Bank - reportedly for $600 million. Donald Trump's one-third share was $200 million, which he later used to finance Trump Casino & Resorts.
Beyond his traditional ventures in the real-estate, hospitality, and entertainment fields and having carved out a niche for the Trump brand within these industries, Trump has moved on to establish the Trump name and brand in a multitude of other industries and products. He has made millions attaching his name to numerous products and services that range from energy drinks to books. He took in $1.1 million in men's wear licensing royalties. Trump earns $15,000 to $100,000 in book royalties and $2.2 million for his involvement with Trump Model Management every year. Until 2015 Trump owned the Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA pageants, collectively worth $15 million.
Trump has marketed his name on a large number of products and services achieving mixed success doing so. Some of his external entrepreneurial and investment ventures include or have included:
- Trump Financial (a mortgage firm)
- Trump Sales and Leasing (residential sales)
- Trump International Realty (a residential and commercial real estate brokerage firm)
- The Trump Entrepreneur Initiative (a for profit business education company, formerly called Trump University)[1]
- Trump Restaurants (located in Trump Tower and consisting of Trump Buffet, Trump Catering, Trump Ice Cream Parlor, and Trump Bar)
- GoTrump.com (a former online travel search engine
- Select By Trump (a line of coffee drinks)
- Trump Drinks (an energy drink for the Israeli and Palestinian markets)
- Donald J. Trump Signature Collection (a line of menswear, men's accessories, and watches)
- Donald Trump The Fragrance (2004)
- SUCCESS by Donald Trump (a second fragrance launched by the Trump Organization and the Five Star Fragrance Company, released in March 2012)
- Trump Ice (a line of bottled water)
- the former Trump Magazine
- Trump Golf
- Trump Chocolate
- Trump Home (home furnishings)
- Trump Productions (a television production company)
- Trump Institute
- Trump: The Game (1989 board game with a 2004 re-release version tied to The Apprentice)
- Donald Trump's Real Estate Tycoon (a business-simulation game)
- Trump Books
- Trump Model Management
- Trump Shuttle
- Trump Mortgage
- Trump Vodka
- Trump Steakhouse
- Trump Steaks.
In addition, Trump reportedly receives $1.5 million for each one-hour presentation he does for The Learning Annex. Trump also endorsed ACN Inc. a multi-level marketing telecommunications company. He has spoken at ACN International Training Events at which he has praised the company's founders, business model and video phone. He earned a total $1.35 million for three speeches given for the company amounting to $450,000 per speech.
The Trump Organization also houses ventures started by Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka, which includes Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry (a jewelry line) and The Ivanka Trump Lifestyle Collection (a high-end designer-fashion and cosmetics line that includes fragrances, footwear, handbags, outerwear and eyewear collections).
Controversies
In 1973, the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) Civil Rights Division filed a civil rights suit against The Trump Organization charging that it refused to rent to black people. The National Urban League had sent black and white testers to apply for apartments in Trump-owned complexes; the whites got the apartments, the blacks did not. According to court records, four superintendents or rental agents reported that applications sent to the central office for acceptance or rejection were coded by race. A 1979 Village Voice article quoted a rental agent who said that Fred Trump instructed him not to rent to black people and to encourage existing black tenants to leave. In 1975, a consent decree described by the head of DOJ's housing division as "one of the most far-reaching ever negotiated," required Trump to advertise vacancies in minority papers and list vacancies with the Urban League. The Justice Department subsequently stated that continuing "racially discriminatory conduct by Trump agents has occurred with such frequency that it has created a substantial impediment to the full enjoyment of equal opportunity."
Also, it is alleged that The Trump Organization has a history of not paying for services rendered. Several hundred contractors or workers for the organization have filed lawsuits or liens saying they were not paid for their work, and others say they had to settle for cents on the dollar.
In 1989, New York State officials ordered the Grand Hyatt New York, a hotel owned at the time by the Trump Organization and the Hyatt Corporation, to pay New York City $2.9 million in rent that had been withheld by the hotel in 1986 due to "unusual" accounting changes approved by Donald Trump. An investigation by New York City auditors noted that the hotel was missing basic financial records and found that the hotel was using procedures that violated generally accepted accounting principles.
From 2000 on, the Trump Organization held 50% of TD Trump Deutschland AG, a corporate venture with a German company, planning to build a skyscraper named "Trump Tower Europe" in Frankfurt, Berlin or Stuttgart, but allegedly never paid the full amount of their €2 million share. At least three lawsuits followed and the company was disestablished in 2005.
As of August 2017, Tom Scharfeld owns the trademark of "iTrump" mobile app which plays the trumpet. As "the word trump has other meanings", the Court did not rule in favour of The Trump Organization.
Further reading
- Frank, Thomas (January 12, 2018). "Secret Money: How Trump Made Millions Selling Condos To Unknown Buyers." BuzzFeed News.
References
External links
- Official website