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Shopping Centers Today -> February 2002
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RECESSION? ‘DON’T FRET,’ TRUMP TELLS INDUSTRY
By Debra Hazel
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| Donald J. Trump |
NEW YORK CITY — Who better to reflect on the current recession than the last recession’s comeback kid himself, Donald J. Trump?
Persistence, passion and luck are some of the keys to rebounding from adversity — and a little revenge doesn’t hurt, according to the New York City developer.
“In 1990, the s*** hit the fan,” Trump recalled, describing his near-bankruptcy in the early 1990s to delegates attending ICSC’s New York Idea Exchange and Deal Making here in December.
Trump, who is chairman and CEO of New York City-based Trump Organization, recalled seeing a beggar near Tiffany’s in 1990 and reflecting that the unfortunate man was worth $900 million more than Trump himself. “Let’s assume he’s worth nothing,” he told his companion. “I’m worth minus $900 million!”
But that didn’t last; Trump rebounded, a recovery he attributed to persistence.
Passion is another key, as is faith in one’s gut instincts, Trump added. Against all advice, he said, he bought the 1.3 million-square-foot 40 Wall Street office building for $1 million in 1995. Downtown is dead, he was told. Yet Trump figured that even if he did little more than rent the 50,000 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, he’d make money.
“Literally from the day I bought the building, the market went through the roof,” he said. The office space is now fully rented, bringing in rents of $32 million per year.
But “you’ve also got to be a little bit lucky,” he acknowledged.
And revenge? “If someone goes after you, you should try to get them.”
But he adopted an altogether more charitable tone when he described the real estate industry’s response to the Sept. 11 atrocities.
“I’m proud of the people in this industry; there’s been no gouging” of companies seeking new space after being displaced by the attack, he said.
And he offered a rosy picture of New York City’s prospects. Indeed, the city is back, and downtown Manhattan is sure to rebound, he said.
Among his properties are the Trump International Hotel & Tower, and The Trump Tower, which has a large retail component.
New York City continues to be a great shopping destination, he added, citing the comeback of Fifth Avenue as a site for luxury retail. And he expressed continued faith in lower Manhattan.
 | Current Issue November 2008 |