“I don’t believe you can ever be hurt by buying a good location at a low price,” says Trump. Even as the city seemed to be crumbling around him, Trump dreamed of the amazing potential for properties throughout New York.
The first piece of real estate that Trump went after was a large abandoned rail yard along the Hudson River. The Trump Organization was officially founded in 1973 when Trump went to meet with the owner of the property. With no formal name, Trump knew he would not get far and so the Trump Organization was created. “Somehow the word ‘organization’ made it sound much bigger,” he recalls.
Not only did Trump succeed in purchasing this property, but also another along West 34th street, which he dreamed could become home to the city’s convention centre. He encountered much opposition to this idea both from the city and from competing developers, but he boldly promised before the press to build the convention centre for $110 million - $150 million less than the city had estimated. In the end, Trump recalls, “we won by wearing everyone else down. We never gave up, and the opposition slowly began to melt away.”
With the success of these deals under his belt, Trump decided to diversify his portfolio, going after The Commodore, a mid-town hotel that was experiencing financial difficulties. He teamed up with a young architect and together the two began to create a new vision for The Commodore. He teamed up with the Hyatt Company and despite numerous refusals by banks for financing, Trump finally succeeded in getting his hotel built in 1980. It proved to be a success.
Next on Trump’s to do list was to acquire the prime property at 57th Street and Fifth Avenue that he had noticed from the very first day he moved to Manhattan. With dreams of constructing a 68-story building with luxurious residential suits, retail space and classy office suites, the infamous Trump Tower was officially opened four years after the day Trump closed the deal.
Trump continued to expand his presence throughout Manhattan by developing such landmarks as Trump Parc, Trump Palace, 610 Park Avenue, The Trump World Tower, and Trump Park Avenue. He has also started to expand globally, with properties in Seoul, Toronto, Sao Paolo and Dubai. He has made a name for himself by providing luxurious and classy spaces for his niche market of the very wealthy. He has also sought opportunities outside of the real estate business, owning part of the broadcast rights to Miss Universe, Miss USA and Miss Teen USA Pageants. His current reality TV show, The Apprentice, has also been a success and has made Donald Trump a household name.
Trump’s success has not come without its difficulties. In the early 1990s, Trump was unprepared for the city’s real estate slump and could not manage to pay off his bank loans, which had skyrocketed to over $2 billion. Forced into bankruptcy, Trump slowly but surely used his deal-making skills to come back from the brink. With best-selling books such as The Art of the Deal, Surviving at the Top, and The Art of the Comeback, Trump has solidified his spot at the top of America’s business elite.
Raising the Stakes: Trump Takes On Manhattan
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