Here's what it's like inside the Berkshire Hathaway shareholder shopping extravaganza
The CenturyLink Center in Omaha hosts both the shopping event in a convention hall, and the annual meeting in an arena right next door.
As we approach CenturyLink at around 11:30 am, it's clear there will be a line before the doors open at 12:00.
When we hop in line we're about 400 or so feet from the door.
But about 200 feet from where we need to turn around to head back towards the entrance.
Eventually, we're somewhere in the middle of the line.
We get in the doors at around 12:10 and immediately head to Fruit of the Loom. It is chaos.
There is no way to really tell who is shopping and who is waiting in line.
But we deal with the crowds because there are hilarious items like boxers with Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger on them.
And t-shirts that say, "The next Warren Buffett."
At the end of this row are, "The next Charlie Munger" t-shirts.
Eventually we get out of Fruit of the Loom and head to Brooks Running to sign up for the "Invest in Yourself" 5K on Sunday morning. Brooks is also mobbed.
But there's no one up there with these guys.
Right behind Brooks is Pampered Chef. Packed.
This is the scene probably 25 minutes after the doors open. These shoppers were here on a mission.
Next we head over the get some 50th anniversary Heinz ketchup and mustard.
A two-pack costs $2.
So we got two of them.
Next is GEICO, one of Berkshire's insurance subsidiaries.
You can actually sign up for insurance on the spot.
The GEICO pig from their commercials about pigs flying.
I had to.
Next we go check out some books. Berkshire Hathaway owns the parent of World Book, which publishes educational books and encyclopedias.
There are also some books about Buffett...
...and Charlie Munger...
And underneath this book about Buffett you can see one of Bill Gates' favorites, "Business Adventures."
Some of Berkshire's other companies include party supplies wholesaler Oriental Trading.
It's crowded, but not overwhelmed.
Berkshire Hathaway also owns Business Wire.
Berkshire owns most of MiTek, a industrial components maker.
The Kirby Company, owned by Berkshire Hathaway, makes vacuums.
They made a gold one for this event.
Berkshire also has a big stake in IBM.
And IBM's "Watson" was "serving up" cognitive cooking. Whatever that is.
BH Media group is Berkshire's unit that owns the Omaha World-Herald.
After lunch, the crowds died down a bit and we checked out the Coca-Cola set up.
Berkshire is Coke's largest shareholder.
The big draw here was the machine that let you put anyone's name on the side of a Coke can.
Still a decent crowd with just a few minutes left in the day.
Next we checked out See's Candies.
See's probably had the largest set up of any company (except the RVs, more on that later.)
This looks familiar!
This picture doesn't quite do it justice, but the See's display was at least half a football field long.
Next up was BNSF, Berkshire's big railroad company.
This booth was all about the huge model train set.
The skyline of Berkshire portfolio companies.
With a model DQ Grill & Chill.
Model train set main street.
Next to the trains was a set up for Forest River, which makes RVs and other camping gear.
You feel like you're actually camping with the mulch and plants indoors.
Another shot of the RV with all the bells and whistles rolled out.
Here's the big rig.
And a boat.
Then there was Wells Lamont, which makes work gloves.
Speaking of Wells...
...you can get your picture taken in front of a Wells Fargo wagon. Berkshire Hathaway is Wells Fargo's largest shareholder.
Over at Clayton homes Buffett does the newspaper toss which goes from here...
...to here.
Cort is a furniture rental company.
IMC makes metal-cutting tools.
Benjamin Moore is one of the biggest paint retailers in the US.
And Justin Brands is a major retailer of Western apparel, like cowboy boots and hats.
Borsheim's is also a major attraction, and the Borsheim's in Omaha hosts a number of shareholder events throughout the weekend.
A Buffett cutout served as security (not actually) at the Borsheim's booth.
Berkshire also owns NetJets, and all day there was a line to take a look inside a small private jet that the company might fly customers in.
But by now, even Fruit of the Loom was calming down.
And on the way out we caught this picture of a young Warren Buffett closing the first deal he ever made under the Berkshire Hathaway umbrella: National Indemnity Co.
And another chance for shareholders to capture the weekend with Warren and Charlie.
Until next time.
Now that you've seen the convention...
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