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American billionaire and real estate mogul Donald Trump is bullish on the India story. After adding two Indian projects to his kitty – Panchshil Realty group in Pune and Lodhas in Mumbai – he is now in India for exploring deals in India’s luxury residential and hospitality market across cities such as Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Goa. Chasing quality rather than quantity and focusing on key projects with its brand-licensing model would be the company’s strategy in India, according to son Donald Trump Jr. Speaking exclusively to BusinessLine on the sidelines of the formal launch of The Trump Tower Mumbai with The Lodha Group, Donald Trump Jr shared his views.
As an American businessman and investor, what do you make of the India story, especially now that there is a new Government in charge?
We witnessed what happened with the previous Governments. It affected us and those projects couldn’t ultimately end up being luxury projects.
With Modi’s election (as Prime Minister), we have someone with a pragmatic, pro-business approach who is regulating the market in a way that isn’t filled with corruption. That is a mindset which can solve and bridge a lot of (India’s) infrastructure issues.
What can we expect from the Trump Organization in terms of its projects in India?
For us, the strategy is all about picking the right project. I don’t need 30 projects in India; I would rather have three that are the very best. India is a place where the brand has resonated very strongly and it has been great to bring my father here for the first time on this trip. The Indian market is very complicated in its own way but there still are some commonalities, be it through the history or language. So for us, India will also be a big part of our emerging market strategy.
What is your toughest challenge in doing business in India ?
The first few trips were all about sorting who’s who, who can really deliver, who is real and who is not. Now we have enough relationships in the market where I can call a person and ask “Is this guy real?” and he can tell me if he isn’t. So that helps a lot.
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