US President Donald Trump might be coming down hard on India as far as tariffs are concerned but his real investment in the country tells a different story. India is in fact, set to become the biggest market for Trump-branded properties outside the US. But what is driving this growth? Let’s take a look.
Trump’s real-estate earnings
Until last year, the company had teamed up with several top builders and made at least Rs 175 crore from seven projects in Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, and Gurugram, according to the available records. Since the first Trump project was announced in India in 2012, the brand’s presence in the country is now expected to grow nearly four times from around 3 million square feet built till last year to about 11 million square feet once all current projects are finished, as per a report by The Indian Express.
According to Tribeca, which handles Trump-branded properties in India, the new developments could generate sales worth at least Rs 15,000 crore. This estimate was shared during the launch of its first commercial project in Pune earlier this year.
How does Trump run his business in India?
The Trump organisation runs its business in India using a brand licensing model. This means it doesn’t spend its own money on building projects. Instead, it allows Indian developers to use the Trump name in exchange for a fee. They are the ones who fund, build, and sell the luxury properties, and it is safe to say that this approach has helped Trump’s real estate growth in India without any financial risks.
Tribeca Developers, led by Kalpesh Mehta, is the main partner of the Trump organisation in India. The company has teamed up with several big Indian real estate firms like Lodha Group, Panchshil Realty, M3M Group, and Unimark to build these properties.
As of August this year, India has four completed Trump Tower projects in Mumbai, Pune, Gurugram, and Kolkata, that cover about 3.5 million square feet. There are six more projects upcoming in Pune, Gurugram, Noida, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru and these could rake in over Rs 15,000 crore (around $1.8 billion).
With this expansion, India will have 10 Trump-branded projects, making it the biggest market for Trump Towers outside the United States.
Trump’s upcoming real-estate projects in India
After Donald Trump’s 2024 election win, six new Trump-branded projects have been announced in India. These will expand the brand into new cities like Bengaluru, Noida, Hyderabad, Gurugram, Mumbai, and Pune. Trump Towers already exist in Gurugram. The new projects will include a mix of residential, commercial, and recreational spaces.
- Trump World Center in Pune: This will be Trump’s first commercial real estate project in India and will be built in Koregaon Park. It will cover an area of 1.6 million square feet. The plan includes two 27-storey glass towers, a luxury shopping street, and the first Trump Club in India, which will also work as a space for business networking. The project is expected to earn around Rs 2,500 crore.
- India’s first Trump-branded golf course and luxury villas: The exact location of where these will be built has not been revealed yet, but it is going to be the first-of-its-kind project in India.
- Trump World Towers will be built in Mumbai, Pune, and Gurugram, where Trump Towers already exist. But the new ones will be different from the ones that already exist in these cities.
- All six projects will be developed in partnership with local real estate builders. The work will follow a full-stack development and management model, which means the same teams will handle everything from planning to selling, as per a report by Hindustan Times.