Those losses were worst in the places where Trump could least afford it: His Washington hotel, which has a $170 million loan outstanding, saw revenue drop more than 60 percent. His Doral resort in Miami — also carrying a huge debt load — saw a 44 percent drop.
On Thursday, the company’s troubles grew: One of its banks and one of its law firms said they would cut their ties with the Trump Organization. They are the latest in a string of vendors and customers who severed their relationships with the company after Jan. 6, when a mob of Trump supporters, egged on by the president, attacked the U.S. Capitol.
The picture emerging shows the inversion of Trump’s fortunes since 2015, when he entered politics promising to remake the country in the image of his growing, swaggering business.
Now, Trump returns to a business remade in the image of the country he led: beleaguered, indebted and toxically politicized.
“He faces some very serious problems that have been building in recent years and I think are going to come to a head now that he’s left office,” said Bert Ely, a banking consultant who has testified before Congress on financial matters.
Ely said the Trump Organization is a relatively small operation, which relies heavily on the work of others — lawyers and real estate brokers, and investors who paid to have Trump’s name on their buildings. Now, some of those outsiders are pulling away. “He’s done enormous reputational damage to himself,” Ely said.
The Trump Organization did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.
Trump still owns his company. But it is unclear when — or even if — he will return to his old role as the company’s day-to-day leader. On Thursday, while Trump was seen playing golf at one of his courses in Florida, the Trump Organization’s website still listed Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump as the company’s leaders.
The new financial disclosures, filed routinely by an outgoing president, show that the company is facing one of its darkest hours, as the coronavirus hammers the tourism industry.
Overall, Trump listed specific revenue figures for 47 different companies, including his golf clubs, hotels and New York City park properties. Combined, revenue at those companies declined more than 35 percent last year, according to a Washington Post analysis.
There were bright spots: Revenue at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Club, a members-only operation in Palm Beach, Fla., that is now doubling as the former president’s home, increased 13 percent. And Trumpstore.com, which sells T-shirts, candles and bath bombs bearing the former president’s name, reported that its income doubled, to $1.9 million.
But there were also sharp declines at three of Trump’s most important properties: his D.C. hotel, his Doral resort in Florida, and his Turnberry resort in Scotland. Their combined revenue fell from $149 million in 2019 to $71 million last year, a drop of more than half.
Trump faces more than $400 million in outstanding…
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