Discovering Malaysia's Next See's Candy: Investment Lessons from Berkshire Hathaway

Applying Warren Buffett’s Investment Insights to Discover Long-Term Value and Growth in Malaysian Businesses

The year 1972 was a turning point for Berkshire Hathaway when it made a transformative acquisition of See’s Candy, a business generating $4 million in annual pre-tax profits with only $8 million in net tangible assets. Despite Warren Buffett’s initial hesitation to pay $30 million, the company’s strong brand and pricing power enabled it to generate $1.9 billion in pre-tax profits, as noted in the 2015 annual letter, with just $40 million in additional investment. This acquisition became one of Berkshire’s most successful, illustrating the value of strong brands, pricing power, and durable competitive advantages. It also taught Warren and Charlie a valuable lesson that later helped them identify Coca-Cola and many other key investments.

In his 2007 annual letter, Buffett further outlined key factors for evaluating businesses, using See’s Candies as an example of success. We are now applying this framework to discover the next "See’s" in Malaysia—a company with the potential for 10X long-term value and growth.