“We got the dream team here and it’s going to be amazing” This was not an attempt at promoting a new company, Mr. A believed it wholeheartedly. The dream team had seen success before, for many of them this was a second or third time working together but this was going to be truly something bigger. The adventure started in the early 80’s when the Chairman believed timing was optimal. He recruited some of the best minds in the business. The team agreed and the starter kit of assets were the beginnings of the company in 1987. Production grew faster and seemingly easier than planned so it became time to look deeper into those international prospects, it was 1993 and they made their first international deal. Fast forward and they were on to several more deals that the marketplace loved. Between 2001 and 2006 the share price went up 11-fold.

an old adage “when those who know it the best love it the least, it is time to buy”. The opposite holds true as well: “when those who know it the best love it the most, it is time to sell”. Mr. A knew the company well, very well. It had taken his modest savings and turned it into more than $30 million dollars. It was all he and Mrs. A had hoped for and more, once they sold they would give the kids some money, travel the world, see amazing things, eat at the best of restaurants, maybe even fly first class but it was not meant to be. Along the way, they never sold a share and never diversified. A few years later the company’s assets were seized and not long after that the company was de-listed from the stock exchange. What could have been never became a reality and it was tragic to watch. This is a lesson we watched first hand and learned from it on so many fronts. This is a reason (not the only one) why we diversify, trim holdings and take some profits along the way.

We pass on these stories from what we have seen and learned about human nature and investing over our careers. Some are lessons to hang on to and some are lessons to avoid but they are all lessons to make us better investors and we learn every day.