Trump Steaks Explained

Trump Steaks
Producttype:Steaks, burgers, sausage
Currentowner:Donald Trump
Country:United States
Introduced:May 8, 2007
Discontinued:July 2007 (The Sharper Image)
Trademarkregistrations:August 2006
Tagline:"The World's Greatest Steaks"
Website:Official website (archive)

Trump Steaks was a brand of steak and other meats that was licensed by Donald Trump.[1] The brand was launched in May 2007 and was exclusively sold through The Sharper Image[2] and QVC.[3] Due to poor sales and a failure to live up to sales and product expectations, The Sharper Image discontinued the Trump Steaks product line in July 2007, just two months after its launch.

History

Donald Trump registered "Trump Steaks" as a U.S. trademark in August 2006. Trump Steaks were launched on May 8, 2007, exclusively through The Sharper Image's catalog, stores, and website as part of a three-month trial period. Later that month, Trump and some contestants from his reality television series The Apprentice attended an event at a Rockefeller Plaza Sharper Image store to promote the steaks.[4]

The meat was supplied by Buckhead Beef,[5] an Atlanta-based company[6] and subsidiary of Sysco. Buckhead Beef also supplied meat to many of Trump's hotel-casino properties.[7] Burgers and sausages were also sold under the Trump Steaks name.[8] The steaks were USDA Angus certified and came in four packages with prices ranging from $199 (with two bone-in rib-eyes, two filet mignons and 12 burgers), $349, $499, and $999,[9] with the tagline of "The World's Greatest Steaks." A Trump Steak Gift Card was also sold at a cost of $1,037. Trump Steaks was featured in a May 2007 Saturday Night Live episode that mocked the brand.[10]

Trump was featured on the June 2007 issue of the Sharper Image magazine to promote Trump Steaks.[11] On June 5, 2007, Trump Steaks debuted on the QVC home shopping television channel, with Trump making an appearance on the network. Trump Steaks (16) 6oz Certified Angus Beef Steakburgers were sold by QVC.[12]

Trump Steaks were sold at The Sharper Image for two months before being discontinued.[13] According to Sharper Image CEO Jerry W. Levin, "The net of all that was we literally sold almost no steaks, if we sold $50,000 of steaks grand total, I'd be surprised."[14] Advertisements featuring Trump's photo attracted customers to buy other products at the store.[15] Trump Steaks were discontinued at QVC around the same time as the Sharper Image discontinuation. The Trump Steaks trademark was canceled in December 2014 according to a trademark search through the United States Patent and Trademark Office.[16]

2007 reception

The New York Post conducted a blind taste test and compared Trump Steaks with mail-order porterhouses from Peter Luger Steak House and three New York City establishments. Trump Steaks earned a rating of 7.5 out of 10 (with the high cost of Trump Steaks noted), losing to 35$/lb mail-order porterhouses from Peter Luger with a rating of 9.5, but a higher rating than the Greenwich Village butcher and the Ottomanelli Brothers.[17] [18] Tad's Steaks, a cheap steak cafeteria,[19] received "This cow should be ashamed". The Associated Press and The Oklahoman wrote positive reviews of the steaks, but also noted the high price.[20] The Palm Beach Post panelists best rated the Angus-certified and prime-graded bone-in rib-eye against choice-graded bone-in rib-eyes and prime-graded Publix, giving the steaks an "A" and writing "Trump isn't kidding. Our panelists could barely believe how flavorful and tender the 16adj=onNaNadj=on bone-in rib-eye was." However, the high price of the steaks was also noted (the others were NaNabbr=onNaNabbr=on).[21] Gourmet magazine opined, "these steaks are wholly mediocre".[22]

2016 U.S. presidential election

In August 2015, TIME magazine included Trump Steaks on a list of Trump business failures. In December 2015, during the 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, a Super PAC supporting John Kasich produced an ad mocking Trump Steaks.[23] On February 10, 2016, the New York Daily News[24] included Trump Steaks on a list of Trump business failures. Steaks from West Palm Beach's Bush Brothers Provision Co.[25] were on display at Trump's Florida news conference celebrating his latest primary victories on March 8, 2016 during which Trump claimed them to be "Trump Steaks".[26] Trump-branded wine and water were also displayed, as an example of Trump's success in business. Observers there noted the Trump-named steaks were produced by a butcher in West Palm Beach. In March 2016, Vox noted that on QVC's website "reviews of Trump steaks were, um, mixed", with more than half of the reviews negative (1 star to 2 stars).[27] In an interview with Anderson Cooper the following day, Trump said that he does not process the steaks but instead purchases them from local suppliers.[28] the only place the steaks can still be purchased is at Trump's various properties.

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Williams . Aaron . Narayanswamy . Anu . How Trump has made millions by selling his name: Exploring President Trump’s licensing and management agreements around the world . 30 November 2023 . . 25 January 2017.
  2. Web site: 12 Donald Trump businesses that no longer exist . . 10 October 2014 . 4 March 2016 . Holodny, Elena . https://web.archive.org/web/20160127054835/http://finance.yahoo.com/news/12-donald-trump-businesses-that-no-longer-exist-204923129.html . 2016-01-27 . live .
  3. News: Donald Trump spent election night pitching Trump products that you can't buy anymore . Nelson . Libby . . 9 March 2016 . 9 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160310105821/http://www.vox.com/2016/3/9/11185282/donald-trump-wine-water-vodka-speech . 2016-03-10 . live .
  4. News: Wharton. Rachel. Steaks high for Trump. November 24, 2017. New York Daily News. May 18, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201035600/http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/steaks-high-trump-article-1.252474. 2017-12-01. live.
  5. Web site: Trump Steaks are so rare, we can't even find one. Tim. Carman. 23 March 2016. 12 May 2018. www.washingtonpost.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20180401194617/https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/food/hey-trump-wheres-the-beef-trump-steaks-are-so-rare-we-cant-even-find-one/2016/03/22/175b682a-ebc3-11e5-bc08-3e03a5b41910_story.html. 2018-04-01. live.
  6. Web site: Contact Us – Buckhead Beef Atlanta. buckheadbeef.com. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180513080837/http://www.buckheadbeef.com/contact-us. 2018-05-13. dead.
  7. News: Goldiner. Dave. USDA prime ego!. November 24, 2017. New York Daily News. May 4, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201080855/http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/eats/usda-prime-ego-article-1.248503. 2017-12-01. live.
  8. News: O'Harran. Kristi. $96 steak, Trump's newest plan to stay very rich. November 24, 2017. The Herald. June 7, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033245/http://www.heraldnet.com/news/96-steak-trumps-newest-plan-to-stay-very-rich/. 2017-12-01. live.
  9. Web site: Dowell . Sharon . 11 July 2007 . Dinner with The Donald: 'World's Greatest' Trump Steaks definitely high in quality and high in price . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160307130816/http://newsok.com/article/3080605 . 2016-03-07 . 4 March 2016 . The Oklahoman.
  10. Web site: Trump Steaks – Saturday Night Live Season 32 Episode 19 Excerpt . . 25 October 2018 . 12 May 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181014053039/https://view.yahoo.com/show/saturday-night-live/clip/4393759/trump-steaks . 2018-10-14 . live .
  11. Donald Trump's 16 Biggest Business Failures and Successes . Time. 7 August 2015 . 4 March 2016 . Koffler, Jacob . https://web.archive.org/web/20150901195653/http://time.com/3988970/donald-trump-business/ . 2015-09-01 . live .
  12. Web site: Trump Steaks (16) 6oz Certified Angus Beef Steakburgers – M15809 — QVC.com. 20 December 2015. 12 May 2018. bot: unknown. https://web.archive.org/web/20151220210300/http://www.qvc.com/Trump-Steaks-(16)-6oz-Certified-Angus-Beef-Steakburgers.product.M15809.html. 20 December 2015.
  13. Web site: Trump Steaks @ Sharper Image. 12 December 2015. 12 May 2018. bot: unknown. https://web.archive.org/web/20151212054151/https://www.sharperimage.com/si/view/product/Trump+Steaks/888888. 12 December 2015.
  14. Web site: A Definitive History Of Trump Steaks™. ThinkProgress. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180512112844/https://thinkprogress.org/a-definitive-history-of-trump-steaks-e0e6fc31b689/. 2018-05-12. live.
  15. Book: ((TIME Editors)) . Donald Trump: The Rise of a Rule Breaker . 2016-04-29 . Time Inc. Books . 978-1-68330-237-7 . en . Time (magazine) . 2016-11-16 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180512181533/https://books.google.com.au/books?id=i6kDDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT83&dq=Trump+Steaks . 2018-05-12 . live.
  16. Web site: The Trademark on Trump Steaks Was Canceled Two Years Ago, Records Show . . 10 March 2016 . 12 March 2016 . Siemaszko, Corky . https://web.archive.org/web/20160311215917/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trademark-trump-steaks-was-canceled-two-years-ago-records-show-n535876 . 2016-03-11 . live .
  17. News: Onofrio Ottomanelli, 83, Dies; Ran a Venerated Meat Market. Diane. Cardwell. 20 December 2000. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180512113218/https://www.nytimes.com/2000/12/20/us/onofrio-ottomanelli-83-dies-aran-a-venerated-meat-market.html. 2018-05-12. live. The New York Times.
  18. Web site: Ottoman(elli) Empire. 24 March 2011. Edible Manhattan. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180512113100/https://www.ediblemanhattan.com/departments/indigenous-industry/ottomanelli-empire-after-60-years-on-bleecker-these-butchering-brothers-still-cut-everything-but-corners/. 2018-05-12. live.
  19. Web site: Farewell to Tad's, Manhattan's Last Meat Honkytonk. eater.com. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180513011333/https://ny.eater.com/2014/7/9/6190829/farewell-to-tads-manhattans-last-meat-honkytonk. 2018-05-13. live. 2014-07-09.
  20. News: Hirsch. J.M.. Trump beefs up his empire by selling high-end steaks. November 24, 2017. Associated Press. Deseret News. May 16, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201030959/https://www.deseretnews.com/article/660220822/Trump-beefs-up-his-empire-by-selling-high-end-steaks.html. 2017-12-01. live.
  21. News: Passy. Charles. Trump Steaks: How does Donald Trump's latest cash cow compare?. November 24, 2017. The Palm Beach Post. May 28, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20171201044631/http://www.palmbeachpost.com/business/trump-steaks-how-does-donald-trump-latest-cash-cow-compare/s0Sp6sQA9Vsq5F4fwLo3TI/. 2017-12-01. dead.
  22. Gourmet. 2 Guys: Trumped . Ian . Knauer . Alan . Sytsma. 23 September 2015. 12 May 2018. bot: unknown. https://web.archive.org/web/20150923090858/http://www.gourmet.com/food/2007/05/trumpsteak.html. 23 September 2015.
  23. Web site: Kasich super PAC ad mocks Trump's steak business . . 11 December 2015 . 4 March 2016 . Gass . Nick . https://web.archive.org/web/20160303184632/http://www.politico.com/story/2015/12/john-kasich-trump-ads-216675 . 2016-03-03 . live .
  24. News: Silverstein. Jason. A brief history of Donald Trump's many, many business failures. November 24, 2017. New York Daily News. February 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20171008181144/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/history-donald-trump-business-failures-article-1.2526913. 2017-10-08. live.
  25. News: When Trump Steaks at a Trump Event Aren't Really 'Trump Steaks'. Bloomberg.com . . Caleb . Melby . 9 March 2016. 12 May 2018. www.bloomberg.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20180513080852/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-09/when-trump-steaks-at-a-trump-event-aren-t-really-trump-steaks. 2018-05-13. live.
  26. Web site: Trump raises the steaks after broiling his rivals. Politico. politico.com. 12 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180807115450/https://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/donald-trump-steaks-press-conference-220468. 2018-08-07. live.
  27. Web site: Stefan . Sirucek . The reviews of Trump Steaks are hilariously bad. 18 December 2015. 12 May 2018. bot: unknown. https://web.archive.org/web/20151218222101/http://www.deathandtaxesmag.com/273968/donald-trump-steaks-bad-reviews/. 18 December 2015 . deathandtaxes.com.
  28. Web site: Anderson Cooper grills Donald Trump about the 'Trump Steaks' piled up at Trump's press conference . . 10 March 2016 . 10 March 2016 . Campbell, Colin . https://web.archive.org/web/20160311021029/http://www.businessinsider.com/anderson-cooper-donald-trump-steaks-interview-2016-3 . 2016-03-11 . live . .

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Trump Steaks".

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