Berkshire Hathaway is about to hold its iconic shareholder meeting — without Warren Buffett as host.
Tens of thousands of people are expected to descend upon Buffett’s hometown of Omaha this weekend for a gathering dubbed “Woodstock for Capitalists.”
As usual, they can shop for Squishmallows plushies and Fruit of the Loom sweatshirts, picnic at Nebraska Furniture Mart, hunt for deals on jewelry at Borsheims, take part in the Brooks Running 5K, and watch a live Q&A with Berkshire’s top brass.
However, Buffett won’t be sitting on stage, taking questions while munching See’s Candies and drinking Coca-Cola. He doesn’t want to steal the spotlight from Greg Abel, who succeeded him as Berkshire’s CEO at the start of this year.
Business Insider will be on the ground reporting from the conference, and before jumping on a flight to Omaha, we asked Berkshire experts making the trip what they’re expecting this weekend.
The Abel effect
Buffett is renowned for his wit, folksy wisdom, and willingness to hold forth on virtually any topic, from marriage and nuclear weapons to politics and corporate malfeasance.
In stark contrast, Abel isn’t a household name and hasn’t shared much about himself or his views on non-Berkshire subjects. That could make for a more sober and restrained Q&A.
“Greg will be responding to questions in a businesslike manner but without Warren Buffett’s humor and personal stories,” David Kass, a finance professor at the University of Maryland, told Business Insider.
Brian Gongol, a Buffett superfan and Berkshire shareholder for nearly 20 years, praised Abel for upholding Buffett’s core principles. But he said the new boss “can’t help but sound more like an accountant than like a founder.”
The Q&A is “likely to feel a lot like when one very capable artist performs a cover version of someone else’s song,” Gongol said. “The lyrics and the melody will stay the same, but the interpretation will give the audience something new.”
Eric Schleien, who said he’s attended every Berkshire bash since 2006, told Business Insider that Buffett’s absence won’t feel “like the headliner canceled.”
“It’s more like the band is still playing, and now the lead guitarist is finally getting to step forward,” said the founder and CEO of Granite State Capital Management and host of “The Intelligent Investing Podcast.”
A more hardcore gathering
The Berkshire meeting simply won’t have the same appeal with neither Buffett nor his late business partner, Charlie Munger, in the hot seat this year.
Gongol predicted that locals and devotees will still make the pilgrimage to Omaha, but there will be fewer international travelers and “people we used to be able to talk into coming along for the ride on the basis of Buffett’s star power.”
Yet he said that Berkshire recognizes the value of its unique shareholder culture and how it directly influences Berkshire’s prospects, and may well lean on “clever marketing work” to draw in crowds.
His fellow Buffett fans might also attend “just for the chance of capturing a glimpse of the legend from across the room,” Gongol added.
“The people who show up this year are going to be the real ones,” Schleien said. “You have to actually care about Berkshire’s business and culture to come out for Greg Abel. I’d expect fewer people but a higher quality crowd.”
Bigger than Buffett
Kass, the finance professor, and Larry Cunningham, the director of the University of Delaware’s Weinberg Center and the author of several books about Berkshire, said they expected around 25,000 to 30,000 people to show up — down from the peak figure of around 40,000.
But Cunningham was still optimistic about the city’s vibe this weekend.
“So much subculture has grown around Berkshire wholly apart from Warren, Omaha will still be abuzz,” he said.
He quoted a line from his 2014 book, Berkshire Beyond Buffett: “Warren’s greatest achievement was creating an organization larger than himself.”
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