The story of Melania Trump's defunct caviar skin care line is sordid, but not Melania's part

Melania Trump was not to blame for her failed skin care line

(Image credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

last updated 23 August 2016

Melania Trump is apparently willing to sue when she believes she has been defamed in the media, but the story of her defunct skin care line, as told by Peter Moskowitz in Racked, actually casts Trump in quite a flattering light. Moskowitz was inspired to chase down the fate of Melania Skincare, a caviar-infused regimen heavily promoted by Trump (including in an appearance she made on Celebrity Apprentice), after discovering that not only could he not find any of the product, even on the internet, but that her website, which once touted it, now redirects to the Trump Organization's site.

The Trump Organization would not make Melania available for an interview with Moskowitz, but a spokesman endorsed the story of Melania Skincare laid out in legal documents. The background is that Trump signed a deal with New Sunshine LLC, an Indianapolis holding company that also sold branded skin care products for the Kardashians and Jersey Shore's JWoww. The company was founded by Indianapolis millionaire Steve Hilbert and John Menard, Wisconsin's wealthiest man, and "to understand what happened to Melania Skincare by Melania Trump, you have to understand that very rich people's personal feuds can have outsized consequences," Moskowitz said. In sum:

About a year after Melania signed a contract with New Sunshine, the company imploded. John Menard found out that the investment company he'd left Hilbert to manage, MH Private Equity, was making less money than he'd believed. He fired Hilbert, but Hilbert refused to leave. So Menard sued Hilbert and the management company controlled by his wife, Tomisue, for breach of contract and fraud. Steve Hilbert filed a countersuit. So did his wife, Tomisue, claiming Menard had pressured Tomisue to have a threesome with him and his wife.... Somewhere in this mess, Menard decided the only way out of his financial obligations to the company he and Hilbert had started was to sue Melania Trump herself.... And so, just months after it was launched, Melania by Melania Trump was mired in lawsuits. It barely shipped to stores. It got into a few hands. And then it was done. [Racked]

Melania Trump had developed and perfected her product for a decade, came up with its package design herself, and had "planned on selling the hell out her line," Moskowitz said. "Her dedication to the brand would have been phenomenal," Hilbert told Racked. "But sometimes litigation starts for shitty reasons." In fact, the only negative aspect of the article is that the court transcripts suggest Melania may have lied under oath about getting a college degree. You can read the entire crazy tale at Racked.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.