Charlie Munger
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
Home Depot was the same. They copied everything.
Home Depot was the same. They copied everything.
How did Jim and you feel about that? Saul was not a crazy guy. He was domineering and so on. But he was also very intelligent.
How did Jim and you feel about that? Saul was not a crazy guy. He was domineering and so on. But he was also very intelligent.
But there aren't many opportunities like Home Depot and Costco. There aren't very many.
But there aren't many opportunities like Home Depot and Costco. There aren't very many.
They were too wedded by the ideas they already had. That's everybody's trouble. You just can't accept a new idea because the place is occupied by an old idea. They got in the habit of getting their real estate practically even nothing because they went into little towns where nothing was valuable. So always their occupancy costs were like zero, and they knew how to make big division stores.
They were too wedded by the ideas they already had. That's everybody's trouble. You just can't accept a new idea because the place is occupied by an old idea. They got in the habit of getting their real estate practically even nothing because they went into little towns where nothing was valuable. So always their occupancy costs were like zero, and they knew how to make big division stores.
That was their formula. So it offended them to go against the rich suburbs and have to pay up for the good locations, and Costco just specialized in the good locations where the rich people lived. And Walmart just let them do it year after year. It was a terrible mistake.
That was their formula. So it offended them to go against the rich suburbs and have to pay up for the good locations, and Costco just specialized in the good locations where the rich people lived. And Walmart just let them do it year after year. It was a terrible mistake.
No, never met him. I knew the son, one of the sons, and they divided it up, you know, in about six parts very early. Yeah, Walton Enterprises. So they never paid much gift taxes or anything.
No, never met him. I knew the son, one of the sons, and they divided it up, you know, in about six parts very early. Yeah, Walton Enterprises. So they never paid much gift taxes or anything.
Look how hard it would be to go into the auto business and have some big killing company. Who's going to win? Who knows? The whole thing has been thrown way up in the air by all these electric cars. All those big new capital requirements, different ways of selling cars. And plus they got these tough unions. See, I just don't even look at the auto industry.
Look how hard it would be to go into the auto business and have some big killing company. Who's going to win? Who knows? The whole thing has been thrown way up in the air by all these electric cars. All those big new capital requirements, different ways of selling cars. And plus they got these tough unions. See, I just don't even look at the auto industry.
Well, for maybe for one or two years, electric cars that are really good at it. Maybe, but certainly nobody else. It's too tough. BYD was a miracle. But that guy works 70 hours a week and has a very high IQ. He can do things you can't do. You can look at somebody else's auto part and he can figure out how to make the goddamn thing. You can't do that, you see.
Well, for maybe for one or two years, electric cars that are really good at it. Maybe, but certainly nobody else. It's too tough. BYD was a miracle. But that guy works 70 hours a week and has a very high IQ. He can do things you can't do. You can look at somebody else's auto part and he can figure out how to make the goddamn thing. You can't do that, you see.