What can a 90 year-old woman from Nebraska teach us about finding profit opportunities in today’s downtrodden mining sector? Let me tell you a story. In 1983, Mrs. Rose Blumkin — nonagenarian proprietor of Nebraska Furniture Mart — was approached by a local investment fund manager who was interested in putting money into her family’s business. After talking with “Mrs. B” and observing her Herculean managerial style about the store, the buyer handed her a check for $55 million. No audit of the books, check of inventory, or verification of property titles. He saw all the qualities he liked in… Read More
What can a 90 year-old woman from Nebraska teach us about finding profit opportunities in today’s downtrodden mining sector? Let me tell you a story. In 1983, Mrs. Rose Blumkin — nonagenarian proprietor of Nebraska Furniture Mart — was approached by a local investment fund manager who was interested in putting money into her family’s business. After talking with “Mrs. B” and observing her Herculean managerial style about the store, the buyer handed her a check for $55 million. No audit of the books, check of inventory, or verification of property titles. He saw all the qualities he liked in Mrs. B — and was willing to pay a lot based on a few key observations and a handshake. That man was Warren Buffett. I’ve learned a lot by studying his examples, like the one above, and applying them to natural resources investing. This “be like Warren” message is an important one for my Junior Resource Advisor readers. That’s because investing in mining — and particularly its highest-potential-return sub-sector, exploration and development — is radically different from conventional investing. #-ad_banner-#Unlike banks or manufacturers, mineral exploration and development companies have no revenue or cash flow. I’ve sat in meetings with Wall… Read More