Rhode Island man bought a $640 branded “Trump” watch for his wife and found it was missing the “T,” leaving it to read “Rump”

Tim Petit, a resident of Middletown, Rhode Island, decided to surprise his wife, Melanie, with a pink limited-edition Trump-themed watch from GetTrumpWatches.com, which cost him $640. He told reporters that he was inspired to make the purchase after hearing President Donald Trump’s “voice hawking the watches” on a radio ad. However, what arrived turned out to be far from the special gift he had planned.

When the package arrived, the couple discovered a major branding error on the watch face — it read “RUMP” instead of “TRUMP,” with the letter “T” missing entirely. Petit shared his reaction, saying, “I’m very disappointed. I wanted to do a special thing for her.” He added that the couple had expected more from the product, stating, “And we expected that it would have the integrity of the President of the United States and good follow-through.”

According to The Independent, Petit also mentioned that his wife was moved to tears by the mistake, saying, “An apology would be nice for making my wife cry.” After a news outlet contacted the company, it responded by apologizing and promising to immediately replace the watch. The company also gave the couple an $800 coupon as a goodwill gesture.

The watch company operates under a paid licensing agreement to use Trump’s name and image

The website for the watches features an ad in which the President says, “It’s Trump time!” However, fine print on the site states that the watches are “not designed, manufactured, distributed or sold by Donald J. Trump, The Trump Organization or any of their respective affiliates or principals.”

It further explains that the company “uses the ‘Trump’ name, image and likeness under a paid license agreement which may be terminated or revoked according to its terms.” The incident is only the latest in a long line of Trump-branded ventures, including a made-in-the-USA gold smartphone that was sold to over 600,000 people but never delivered, raising questions about the commercial use of the Trump name.

The incidents come amid a large volume of merchandise associated with the President. A watchdog group claimed last month that the Trump Store – the official retail website of the Trump Organization, overseen by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump – has pushed out more than 600 items since the President returned to the White House.

The Trump Store launched in 2017 during Trump’s first term. According to Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, the store sold at least 622 new products totaling nearly $43,000 in combined cost in the first 14 months of Trump’s second term. 

The organization stated, “This is an unprecedented level of monetization of the presidency, even by the standards of Trump’s own first term.” The pattern extends beyond merchandise. A billionaire who poured $45 million into Trump’s crypto project and secured an advisory role found things turned ugly the moment he stopped writing checks, further fueling scrutiny over the financial relationships surrounding the Trump brand.

Based on last published financial records, the store brought in $8.8 million in 2024, the year Trump was elected for a second time. The White House has consistently denied claims that the President has profited from his time in office.