Buying a Business 45the company. The other 10 percent is owned by 55 managers
who love their company and wanted to be part owners; this en-
trepreneurial spirit among management is one of the qualities
Buffett looks for.- Larson-Juhl, the leading supplier of framing materials to custom
framing shops. Purchased in 2001 for $225 million. - CORT Business Services, which leases quality furniture to off ices
and corporate-owned apartments. Purchased in 2000 for $467
million, including $83 million of debt. - Ben Bridge Jeweler, a West Coast chain owned and operated by
the same family for four generations. A requirement of the pur-
chase was that the Bridge family remain to manage the company.
Purchased in 2000 for a price not disclosed publicly. - Justin Industries, which makes Western boots ( Justin, Tony Lama,
and other brands) and, under the Acme brand name, bricks. Pur-
chased in 2000 for $600 million. - Benjamin Moore, which has been making paint for 121 years.
Purchased in 2000 for $1 billion. - Shaw Industries, the largest manufacturer of carpeting in the
world. Purchased 87 percent of the company in 2000 and the re-
mainder in early 2002, for a total of $2 billion. Currently, Shaw is,
except for insurance, Berkshire’s largest business, with 2003 earn-
ings of $436 million.
CLAYTON HOMES
In 1966, James Clayton, the son of a Tennessee sharecropper, started a
mobile home business with $25,000 of borrowed money. Within four
years, Clayton Homes was selling 700 units annually. Clayton is now
one of the largest makers of manufactured homes in the United States,
with about $1.2 billion in sales in 2003. Home models range from
modest (500 square feet, priced at $10,000) to luxury ($100,000 for
1,500 square feet, with hardwood f loors, stainless steel appliances, and
island kitchens).
Clayton has about 976 retailers in the United States, including 302
company-owned stores, 86 company-owned community sales off ices,
and 588 manufactured housing communities in 33 states. It also owns