What did Holmes seek from a private equity investor?
Holmes’ founder had two objectives in originally speaking with Berkshire. He wanted to find a partner who was more aligned with his desire to pursue strategic growth initiatives, and he wanted a close relationship with sophisticated investors who could help him with financial and strategic planning as well as think through the operating challenges that confronted him in his rapidly growing but intensely competitive and logistically complex business. He knew he wanted help, and the Berkshire resources and operating style were definitely attributes that he highly valued.
