巴菲特致股东的信（2020年）⑤双城记

A Tale of Two Cities

双城记

Success stories abound throughout America. Since our country’s birth, individuals with an idea, ambition and often just a pittance of capital have succeeded beyond their dreams by creating something new or by improving the customer’s experience with something old.

美国到处都是成功的故事。自建国以来，那些怀揣理想、充满抱负、往往只有一点点资本的人，通过创造新事物或改善老事物的客户体验，取得了远超自己梦想的成功。

Charlie and I journeyed throughout the nation to join with many of these individuals or their families. On the West Coast, we began the routine in 1972 with our purchase of See’s Candy. A full century ago, Mary See set out to deliver an age-old product that she had reinvented with special recipes. Added to her business plan were quaint stores staffed by friendly salespeople. Her first small outlet in Los Angeles eventually led to several hundred shops, spread throughout the West.

查理和我走遍全国，与许多这样的个人或家族携手合作。在西海岸，我们从1972年收购喜诗糖果 (See's Candies) 开始了这一传统。整整一个世纪前，玛丽·喜 (Mary See) 用独家配方重新改良了一种古老的产品，开始了她的事业。她的商业计划还包括开设古色古香的小店，配上亲切友好的销售人员。她在洛杉矶的第一家小店最终发展成了几百家门店，遍布整个西部。

Today, Mrs. See’s creations continue to delight customers while providing life-long employment for thousands of women and men. Berkshire’s job is simply not to meddle with the company’s success. When a business manufactures and distributes a non-essential consumer product, the customer is the boss. And, after 100 years, the customer’s message to Berkshire remains clear: “Don’t mess with my candy.” (The website is https://www.sees.com/; try the peanut brittle.)

今天，喜诗的产品继续让顾客们欢喜，同时为成千上万的男女提供终身就业。伯克希尔的工作很简单：别去干扰这家公司的成功。当一家企业生产和销售的是非必需消费品时，顾客就是老板。在100年后的今天，顾客对伯克希尔传达的信息依然清晰明了："别动我的糖果。"（网址是 https://www.sees.com/；试试花生糖。）

Let’s move across the continent to Washington, D.C. In 1936, Leo Goodwin, along with his wife, Lillian, became convinced that auto insurance – a standardized product customarily purchased from agents – could be sold directly at a much lower price. Armed with $100,000, the pair took on giant insurers possessing 1,000 times or more their capital. Government Employees Insurance Company (later shortened to GEICO) was on its way.

让我们跨越整个大陆，来到华盛顿特区。1936年，利奥·古德温 (Leo Goodwin) 和妻子莉莲 (Lillian) 认定，汽车保险——一种通常从代理人手里购买的标准化产品——完全可以直接以低得多的价格出售。夫妻俩揣着10万美元，向资本超出他们千倍甚至更多的保险巨头发起了挑战。盖可保险公司（后来简称为盖可保险 GEICO）就此上路。

By luck, I was exposed to the company’s potential a full 70 years ago. It instantly became my first love (of an investment sort). You know the rest of the story: Berkshire eventually became the 100% owner of GEICO, which at 84 years of age is constantly fine-tuning – but not changing – the vision of Leo and Lillian.

70年前，我有幸接触到了这家公司的潜力，它立刻成了我的初恋（投资意义上的）。后面的故事你们都知道了：伯克希尔最终百分之百拥有了盖可保险。这家84岁的公司始终在微调，但从未改变利奥和莉莲当初的愿景。

There has been, however, a change in the company’s size. In 1937, its first full year of operation, GEICO did $238,288 of business. Last year the figure was $35 billion.

然而，公司的规模发生了翻天覆地的变化。1937年，盖可保险全面运营的第一年，业务额为238,288美元。去年，这个数字是350亿美元。

Today, with much of finance, media, government and tech located in coastal areas, it’s easy to overlook the many miracles occurring in middle America. Let’s focus on two communities that provide stunning illustrations of the talent and ambition existing throughout our country.

今天，金融、媒体、政府和科技大多聚集在沿海地区，人们很容易忽视美国中部正在发生的许多奇迹。让我们聚焦两个地方，它们完美地展示了遍布全国的人才和抱负。

You will not be surprised that I begin with Omaha.

我从奥马哈 (Omaha) 说起，我想你不会感到意外。

In 1940, Jack Ringwalt, a graduate of Omaha’s Central High School (the alma mater as well of Charlie, my dad, my first wife, our three children and two grandchildren), decided to start a property/casualty insurance company funded by $125,000 in capital.

1940年，杰克·林沃特 (Jack Ringwalt) ——毕业于奥马哈中心高中（这也是查理、我父亲、我的第一任妻子、我们的三个孩子和两个孙辈的母校）——决定用125,000美元的资本创办一家财产/意外险公司。

Jack’s dream was preposterous, requiring his pipsqueak operation – somewhat pompously christened as National Indemnity – to compete with giant insurers, all of which operated with abundant capital. Additionally, those competitors were solidly entrenched with nationwide networks of well-funded and long-established local agents. Under Jack’s plan, National Indemnity, unlike GEICO, would itself use whatever agencies deigned to accept it and consequently enjoy no cost advantage in its acquisition of business. To overcome those formidable handicaps, National Indemnity focused on “odd-ball” risks, which were deemed unimportant by the “big boys.” And, improbably, the strategy succeeded.

杰克的梦想近乎荒唐。他给公司起了一个颇为气派的名字——国民保险公司 (National Indemnity)，但这家弱小的公司必须与拥有充足资本的保险巨头们竞争。更何况，那些竞争对手凭借遍布全国的、资金雄厚且历史悠久的当地代理商网络，早已占据了牢固的地位。在杰克的计划里，国民保险公司不像盖可保险那样直销，而是使用那些肯接受它的代理机构，因此在获取业务时毫无成本优势。为了克服这些巨大的劣势，国民保险公司把重点放在了那些被"大佬们"看不上的"古怪"风险上。出人意料的是，这个策略成功了。

Jack was honest, shrewd, likeable and a bit quirky. In particular, he disliked regulators. When he periodically became annoyed with their supervision, he would feel an urge to sell his company.

杰克为人诚实、精明、招人喜欢，也有点古怪。他特别讨厌监管机构。每当他被监管者的管束搞得心烦意乱时，就会产生卖掉公司的冲动。

Fortunately, I was nearby on one of those occasions. Jack liked the idea of joining Berkshire, and we made a deal in 1967, taking all of 15 minutes to reach a handshake. I never asked for an audit.

幸运的是，有一次他犯冲动的时候我恰好就在旁边。杰克喜欢加入伯克希尔的想法，于是我们在1967年达成了交易，前后只花了15分钟就握了手。我从来没有要求做审计。

Today National Indemnity is the only company in the world prepared to insure certain giant risks. And, yes, it remains based in Omaha, a few miles from Berkshire’s home office.

今天，国民保险公司是世界上唯一一家准备为某些巨型风险承保的公司。没错，它的总部仍然在奥马哈，离伯克希尔总部只有几英里。

Over the years, we have purchased four additional businesses from Omaha families, the best known among them being Nebraska Furniture Mart (“NFM”). The company’s founder, Rose Blumkin (“Mrs. B”), arrived in Seattle in 1915 as a Russian emigrant, unable to read or speak English. She settled in Omaha several years later and by 1936 had saved $2,500 with which to start a furniture store.

多年来，我们又从奥马哈的家族企业手中收购了四家公司，其中最知名的是内布拉斯加家具店 (Nebraska Furniture Mart, "NFM")。公司创始人罗斯·布卢姆金 (Rose Blumkin, "B夫人") 1915年作为俄罗斯移民来到西雅图，既不识英文也不会说英语。几年后她定居奥马哈，到1936年攒下了2,500美元，用这笔钱开了一家家具店。

Competitors and suppliers ignored her, and for a time their judgment seemed correct: World War II stalled her business, and at yearend 1946, the company’s net worth had grown to only $72,264. Cash, both in the till and on deposit, totaled $50 (that’s not a typo).

竞争对手和供应商都没把她放在眼里，一段时间内他们的判断似乎没错：二战让她的生意停滞不前，到1946年底，公司净资产仅增长到72,264美元。收银台里加上银行存款，现金总共只有50美元（没打错字）。

One invaluable asset, however, went unrecorded in the 1946 figures: Louie Blumkin, Mrs. B’s only son, had rejoined the store after four years in the U.S. Army. Louie fought at Normandy’s Omaha Beach following the D-Day invasion, earned a Purple Heart for injuries sustained in the Battle of the Bulge, and finally sailed home in November 1945.

然而，1946年的财务数字里漏记了一笔无价的资产：B夫人唯一的儿子路易·布卢姆金 (Louie Blumkin) 在美国陆军服役四年后重返家族店铺。路易在诺曼底登陆后参加了奥马哈海滩的战斗，在突出部战役中受伤并获得紫心勋章，最终于1945年11月乘船回国。

Once Mrs. B and Louie were reunited, there was no stopping NFM. Driven by their dream, mother and son worked days, nights and weekends. The result was a retailing miracle.

B夫人和路易重聚之后，NFM就势不可挡了。在梦想的驱动下，母子俩起早贪黑、常年无休。结果创造了零售业的一个奇迹。

By 1983, the pair had created a business worth $60 million. That year, on my birthday, Berkshire purchased 80% of NFM, again without an audit. I counted on Blumkin family members to run the business; the third and fourth generation do so today. Mrs. B, it should be noted, worked daily until she was 103 – a ridiculously premature retirement age as judged by Charlie and me.

到1983年，母子俩已经打造出一个价值6,000万美元的企业。那一年我生日那天，伯克希尔收购了NFM 80%的股份，同样没有做审计。我指望布卢姆金家族的成员来经营企业；今天第三代和第四代依然在管理。值得一提的是，B夫人每天工作，一直干到103岁——用查理和我的标准来看，这退休年龄未免太早了点。

NFM now owns the three largest home-furnishings stores in the U.S. Each set a sales record in 2020, a feat achieved despite the closing of NFM’s stores for more than six weeks because of COVID-19.

NFM目前拥有全美最大的三家家居用品商店。2020年每一家都创下了销售纪录，而这还是在因新冠疫情关店超过六周的情况下取得的。

A post-script to this story says it all: When Mrs. B’s large family gathered for holiday meals, she always asked that they sing a song before eating. Her selection never varied: Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America.”

这个故事的后记说明了一切：B夫人家的一大家子聚在一起过节吃饭时，她总是要求大家在动筷子之前先唱首歌。她的选择从来不变：欧文·柏林 (Irving Berlin) 的《上帝保佑美国》(God Bless America)。

Let’s move somewhat east to Knoxville, the third largest city in Tennessee. There, Berkshire has ownership in two remarkable companies – Clayton Homes (100% owned) and Pilot Travel Centers (38% owned now, but headed for 80% in 2023).

让我们再往东走，来到田纳西州第三大城市诺克斯维尔 (Knoxville)。在那里，伯克希尔拥有两家了不起的公司——克莱顿房屋 (Clayton Homes)（百分之百持股）和Pilot Travel Centers（目前持股38%，计划到2023年增至80%）。

Each company was started by a young man who had graduated from the University of Tennessee and stayed put in Knoxville. Neither had a meaningful amount of capital nor wealthy parents.

两家公司各由一位毕业于田纳西大学并留在诺克斯维尔的年轻人创立。两人既没有像样的启动资金，也没有富裕的父母。

But, so what? Today, Clayton and Pilot each have annual pre-tax earnings of more than $1 billion. Together they employ about 47,000 men and women.

那又怎样？如今，克莱顿和Pilot每家的年税前利润都超过了10亿美元。两家公司合计雇用约4.7万名员工。

Jim Clayton, after several other business ventures, founded Clayton Homes on a shoestring in 1956, and “Big Jim” Haslam started what became Pilot Travel Centers in 1958 by purchasing a service station for $6,000. Each of the men later brought into the business a son with the same passion, values and brains as his father. Sometimes there is a magic to genes.

吉姆·克莱顿 (Jim Clayton) 在经历了几次创业之后，于1956年以微薄资金创建了克莱顿房屋。"大吉姆"哈斯拉姆 (Big Jim Haslam) 则在1958年以6,000美元买下一个加油站，创建了后来的Pilot Travel Centers。两人后来各自带了一个儿子进入公司，这些儿子拥有与父亲同样的激情、价值观和头脑。有时候基因真的有魔力。

“Big Jim” Haslam, now 90, has recently authored an inspirational book in which he relates how Jim Clayton’s son, Kevin, encouraged the Haslams to sell a large portion of Pilot to Berkshire. Every retailer knows that satisfied customers are a store’s best salespeople. That’s true when businesses are changing hands as well.

现年90岁的大吉姆·哈斯拉姆最近出了一本励志书，书中讲述了吉姆·克莱顿的儿子凯文 (Kevin) 是如何说服哈斯拉姆家族将Pilot的大部分股权卖给伯克希尔的。每个零售商都知道，满意的顾客是最好的销售员。企业易手时同样如此。

When you next fly over Knoxville or Omaha, tip your hat to the Claytons, Haslams and Blumkins as well as to the army of successful entrepreneurs who populate every part of our country. These builders needed America’s framework for prosperity – a unique experiment when it was crafted in 1789 – to achieve their potential. In turn, America needed citizens like Jim C., Jim H., Mrs. B and Louie to accomplish the miracles our founding fathers sought.

下次你飞越诺克斯维尔或奥马哈上空时，请向克莱顿家族、哈斯拉姆家族和布卢姆金家族致敬，也向遍布全国各地的成功创业者大军致敬。这些建设者需要美国的繁荣制度框架——1789年精心设计的那场独特实验——来释放他们的潜能。反过来，美国也需要像吉姆·克莱顿、吉姆·哈斯拉姆、B夫人和路易这样的公民来实现国父们追求的奇迹。

Today, many people forge similar miracles throughout the world, creating a spread of prosperity that benefits all of humanity. In its brief 232 years of existence, however, there has been no incubator for unleashing human potential like America. Despite some severe interruptions, our country’s economic progress has been breathtaking.

今天，世界各地的人们正在创造类似的奇迹，带来惠及全人类的广泛繁荣。然而，在短短232年的历史中，世界上还没有哪个地方像美国这样善于激发人类的潜能。尽管经历了一些严重的中断，美国的经济进步依然令人叹为观止。

Beyond that, we retain our constitutional aspiration of becoming “a more perfect union.” Progress on that front has been slow, uneven and often discouraging. We have, however, moved forward and will continue to do so.

此外，我们还保有宪法赋予的愿望——成为"一个更加完美的联邦"。在这条路上，进展缓慢、参差不齐，而且常常令人沮丧。不过，我们确实在前进，而且将继续前进。

Our unwavering conclusion: Never bet against America.

我们坚定不移的结论：永远不要做空美国。