Detlev Louis Motorrad-Vertriebs GmbH

Identity

Full Name: Detlev Louis Motorrad-Vertriebs GmbH
Sector: Specialty Retail (Motorcycle Accessories & Apparel)
Headquarters: Hamburg, Germany
Founders: Detlev and Ute Louis
Acquisition: Closed in late April / early May 2015 (mentioned as "a few days ago" at the April 30 Annual Meeting)

Business Description

Detlev Louis is Germany's largest retailer of motorcycle accessories, clothing, and equipment, operating a network of approximately 70 stores. The business was built over 35+ years by Detlev Louis and his wife Ute. After Detlev died, Ute Louis chose to sell the company — and specifically chose Berkshire Hathaway as the buyer.

Berkshire's View

Buffett used the Detlev Louis acquisition at the 2015 Annual Meeting as the most vivid illustration of Berkshire's growing international reputation as a "buyer of choice." The fact that a German family business owner — who had multiple options — chose Berkshire specifically demonstrates that the culture has become an asset independent of the Buffett and Munger personalities:

"She and her husband had spent over 35 years developing this business of retail shops, dealing with motorcycle owners, and lovingly had built this business. Her husband died a couple of years ago. And Mrs. Louis wanted to sell to Berkshire Hathaway. That would not have been the case 30 or 40 years ago."

Berkshire Mentions

• 2015 Annual Meeting: First and primary mention; used as proof of Berkshire's self-reinforcing culture and buyer-of-choice reputation

Connections

• Concepts: Buyer of Choice, Culture, Manager Autonomy, Succession Planning
• Themes: Culture as Moat, Guardian of Culture