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There's more to the story behind business leaders Tevfik Arif and Donald Trump. This article explains the truth behind their relationship and how the Trump SoHo venture in New York City proved successful for the partners. While they conversed about other projects beyond the luxury hotel, no other developments occurred between the two businessmen.

Arif's company Bayrock Group succeeded in Turkey and the United States. After several accomplishments in real estate ventures, including Loehmann's Seaport Plaza shopping center in Brooklyn, Bayrock moved its offices into the Trump Tower of Midtown Manhattan. Due to the physical office space closeness of Bayrock Group and The Trump Organization, the companies decided to move forward with an expansive business opportunity in the center of the bustling SoHo neighborhood.

Early life in Kazakhstan - how it started

Tevfik Arif was raised in a Turkish family based in Soviet Kazakhstan. Later in life, he took on prestigious roles in government, an honorable career path among peers in his community. As the Soviet Union disbanded, Arif decided to use his knowledge from his studies in International Relations and his role as deputy head at the Soviet Ministry of Commerce and Trade to jumpstart his career internationally through the Ministry's Hotel Management Department.

Arif was always passionate about business, real estate, and economics. So when the Soviet Union dissolved, the perfect starting point arose for Arif to venture into the private business sector. He quit his role in government after 17 years of diligent work and opened several businesses in the automobile industry, imports and exports, and high-end real estate around the world.

One of the most notable qualities of Arif's positioning as a business owner was to incorporate the highest standards into all his projects. In the Trump SoHo project, for example, he decided to partner with The Sapir Organization, Handel Architects, the Rockwell Group, and The Trump Organization to initiate a holistic, luxurious effect on the building. No matter the structure or business pursuit, Arif believes in the importance of diversification and a robust construction strategy for the best company and customer results.

New York City real estate project connects Arif and Trump

After moving to Turkey from Kazakhstan, Arif established the all-inclusive hotel called the Labada Hotel in Antalya, which made way for his future success in international real estate. Once the hotel was running, he moved to the American city of dreams to develop further projects.

In 2001, Arif started focusing on larger deals, moving the Bayrock headquarters into the Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. This physical distance resulted in partnering with The Trump Organization to build the luxury hotel Trump SoHo, along with The Sapir Organization.

The Bayrock Group and The Sapir Organization were already developing the real estate project together and strategically planned for a more prominent hotel brand recognition by utilizing the Trump name. In turn, The Trump Organization received 18% equity from the building while the two other organizations completed the construction and hands-on development.

Arif and Trump were business partners in that both their teams collaborated to build an entity that stimulated the economy of SoHo and benefitted all three groups and customers involved in the project. Although stories run among news sources and chatter, Arif and Trump had clear and innocent intentions of partnering - it was for the sake of mutual agreements and formally moving forward with successful endeavors.

Considering the Trump name was used to highlight the hotel's brand, it is apparent that the relationship between Arif and Trump was strictly business in exchange for equity. While the teams worked well together and had high compatibility, there was no collaboration or talk outside the hotel's development.

Projects continued after Trump SoHo

Though the high-end hotel development was the only project built between Arif's group and Trump's organization, the success of the Trump SoHo flourished over the years. Because of this, Bayrock Group and The Trump Organization explored more joint business ventures. The discussions included ideas for buildings in Florida and Arizona.

Because of the financial crisis in 2008, the work between the companies ceased as the American real estate market took a hit. Due to the stark change in the market, Arif left the United States and continued his work in Europe and Central Asia.

Tevfik Arif has since retired from his business, though he remains a highly regarded advisor to the Bayrock Group. The Trump SoHo changed its name to The Dominick and is now owned by the CIM Group since 2014.