Rob Cortis has faith in President Donald Trump - and in the MAGA-themed store he owns in Michigan.
asserted
he → have → Michigan
“There’s still the chance that Trump always pulls rabbits out of his hat,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → hat
“Is he gonna run in 2028?”
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he → go → 2028
Cortis runs the Trump Unity Bridge Shop in the Detroit suburb of Livonia.
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Cortis → run → Livonia
And, unlike the several Trump-themed stores shutting their doors across the country, he has no plans to close.
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he → theme → plans
“It's always busier during the elections, and then it slows down in between,” he told The Independent.
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he → slow → Independent
“It’s getting very busy now during the election again.”
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It → get → election
Trump merchandise accounts for about 80 percent of the store’s sales, Cortis said, with hats remaining a strong seller.
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hats → account → sales
“MAGA hats are still moving pretty good…ICE hats are selling,” he said.
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he → move → ?
But other retailers are not so optimistic and find themselves confronting a challenging political reality: the president is an unpopular lame duck with no reelection campaign on the horizon to fuel sales.
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president → find → sales
Roughly 20 stores nationwide sell Trump merchandise, according to Ron Solomon, who heads the online retailer MAGA Mall.
uncertain
who → sell → retailer
But over the past year, at least four stores nationwide have shut closed up shop, including locations in Pennsylvania and Tennessee, according to NPR.
uncertain
stores → shut → NPR
“He's no longer a viable business model for entrepreneurs because he has peaked,” Wes Alker, a Trump supporter who frequented the Pennsylvania store, told the outlet.
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who → peak → outlet
The closures come amid a broader sales slump for MAGA merchandise.
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closures → come → merchandise
Retailers selling hats, T-shirts and other items bearing the president’s likeness and slogans have seen sales fall sharply, The Wall Street Journal reported last month.
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Journal → sell → likeness
Some blamed economic conditions, with inflation driving up prices even for official Trump merchandise.
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inflation → blame → merchandise
Trump’s approval rating has fallen to record lows in recent months amid voter frustration over the cost of living and the ongoing Iran war, which has no clear end in sight.
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which → fall → sight
On January 5, the Trump Store in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, announced it was shuttering its brick-and-mortar operations after six years in business.
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it → announce → business
“Come in tomorrow until January 31st for store-wide savings,” the store said in a Facebook post.
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store → come → post
Owner Mike Domanico told CBS News that he opted to shut it down because he’s semi-retired and focusing on other business ventures.
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he → tell → ventures
“The store has kind of run its course,” he said.
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he → run → course
“You know, it's been six years and the elections are over.
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elections → know → ?
Trump's not gonna be in another election, even though he'll be part of it.”
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he → go → it
David Russell, who frequented the store, added: “Most of the stuff they sell was to promote Trump.
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they → frequent → Trump
You can't do much more for him than he's already gotten.”
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he → do → him
A Trump superstore outside Knoxville, Tennessee, also closed this summer.
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superstore → close → Knoxville
Owner Bill Hays told NPR that some of the president’s policies, including DOGE’s spending cuts, had hurt business.
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some → tell → business
He also noted that some customers were choosing to have their purchases bagged rather than putting on their new Trump apparel in the store.
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purchases → note → store
“People were not wearing their colors, so to speak, like they did before the [2024] election," Hays said, noting that sales had fallen to $20,000 a month from a high of $200,000.
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sales → wear → 200,000
“After the inauguration, I think a lot of people felt that their job was done,” he said.
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he → think → people
The Aporia
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