Donald Trump loves to exaggerate the truth when it comes to his accomplishments, but this time around, it was Ivanka Trump‘s fashion line that found a new ending to its story. In 2007, the oldest daughter of the former president kicked off her budding career as a fashionista with Ivanka Trump Fine Jewelry in New York City.
She expanded her fashion empire in 2011 with what Town & Country described as “women’s office wear at an affordable price point” to department stores like Macy’s. The line was a huge hit, generating $75 million in less than a decade, according to The New York Times in 2013. She also added handbags and shoes to the mix. However, it seems that Donald Trump’s run for office in 2015 was the beginning of the end of her successful run.
In 2018, Ivanka revealed that she was closing her business for good. “After 17 months in Washington, I do not know when or if I will ever return to the business, but I do know that my focus for the foreseeable future will be the work I am doing here in Washington,” she said in a statement given to the Wall Street Journal. “So, making this decision now is the only fair outcome for my team and partners.”
While she blamed her political job, Bloomberg revealed that poor sales were really to blame. Nordstrom dropped the line, and the clothes were heavily discounted in stores like TJ Maxx. Still, Donald Trump wanted to rewrite the ending to his daughter’s business story. “It was so hot,” he said in a fireside chat with Moms for Liberty on Friday, Aug. 30 while claiming his daughter gave up “making so much money” to work in his administration.
He even thought she would make a great U.N. ambassador because there’d be nobody to compete with her. “She may be my daughter, but nobody could have competed with her, with her rat-tat-tat, the whole deal she’s got,” Donald Trump said while touting her job-creating skills without backing his claims with facts. “She would go around, not a glamorous job, to see Walmart, to see Exxon, all these big companies to hire people,” he added.
The demise of her fashion brand tells a different story, but Donald Trump wants a happier ending for Ivanka.
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