Eitan Wertheimer

Eitan Wertheimer is the Chairman and principal owner of ISCAR, the Israeli precision cutting-tool manufacturer acquired by Berkshire Hathaway in 2006. He is the son of ISCAR's founder, Stef Wertheimer, who built the business from a garage workshop. Eitan represents the second-generation stewardship that brought ISCAR to global leadership — and, ultimately, to Berkshire.

📝 The Letter That Started It All

In October 2005, Wertheimer sent Warren Buffett a 1¼-page handwritten letter proposing that Berkshire acquire ISCAR. No investment bankers. No auction process. No intermediaries. Just a direct approach grounded in admiration for Berkshire's ownership philosophy.

Buffett's reaction: "Character and talent just jumped off the page at me, and this was one of those letters, and it came from Israel."

The letter itself is the clearest single example of Berkshire's Buyer of Choice reputation transcending geography. A second-generation industrial family in Tefen, Israel had studied Berkshire's letters closely enough to know that the right buyer was in Omaha — and trusted the process enough to bypass the entire investment banking industry to get there.

📝 The Acquisition Philosophy

Wertheimer's decision to approach Berkshire directly (rather than run an auction) reflected a foundational belief: the long-term welfare of ISCAR's 5,869 employees and their families was more important than maximizing the sale price. This priority ordering is the core of the Buyer of Choice screen — it simultaneously identifies quality sellers and quality stewards.

At the 2006 Berkshire annual meeting, Wertheimer told 24,000 shareholders: "I'm standing here before you representing 5,869 people — not only the people, but the families, their past and their future."

🔗 Connections

• Company: ISCAR
• Partner: Jacob Harpaz (CEO)
• Concepts: Buyer of Choice, Non-Auction Strategy, Manager Autonomy
• Sources: 2006 Letter, 2006 Meeting