Coming up Trumps

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Donald trump Jr has no interest in being a television celebrity. After 28 years spent shying away from the glare of his father's fame he has emerged from the shadows with a starring role in the fifth series of the US reality TV show The Apprentice.

But only, he is keen to point out, to promote his main passion in life - the real estate business.

Describing TV as "not really my thing" he says, "I'm just a builder. I'm a real estate guy. I do that (TV) because as a businessman I would be stupid if I didn't take advantage of opportunities to do certain things that are presented to me that can promote the brand and the developments that we have been doing."

"The Apprentice has been an hour long prime time TV commercial about our product and it doesn't get any better than that.

"So for me to say ‘no, I don't want to do that because I don't want to be on TV,I'd be a stupid idiot. I would be looked at as a not intelligent person."

And the last thing Trump Jr, who is married to model Vanessa Trump and has a seven-month-old baby girl, wants is to be seen as is a "not intelligent person". Unlike his sister Ivanka who has traded heavily on the Trump name to launch a lucrative modeling career, Trump has so far stayed out of the spotlight, preferring instead to spend five years building up his profile within The Trump Organisation.

Currently vice president for development and acquisitions he has a bachelor's degree in finance and real estate and has been directly involved in several of the major Trump Organisation developments including: Trump Park Avenue; Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago; and The Trump International Hotel and Tower on the Palm Jumeirah, a joint venture between The Trump Organisation and Nakheel.

Over the course of our half hour conversation Trump Jr's enthusiasm and detailed knowledge of the global real estate business comes through loud
and clear.

While it would be very easy to dismiss him as a spoilt rich kid who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth - and a ready made job at the top of one of the world's most high profile property companies - it is clear that Trump Jr is no fool.

"I do love real estate, it's amazing," he tells me.

"I love dabbling in it whether it's big deals or small deals, it's very fascinating," he says, adding that for him, the main appeal of working in the property business is the fact that he's dealing with tangible assets - bricks and mortar rather than stocks and shares.

"What's great about real estate is that it's a tangible asset. It's there and you can see it and feel it every day.

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