Iditarod

Unseen Value in Sears' Brands

Yes yes, SHLD will be saved by battery sales...

How about quantifying the vaunted real-estate value if it's so great? Why do I doubt it, given the attention Lampert has received?

As a substantial FAIRX holder, Berkowitz's recent comments sound disturbingly un-Buffett-like. Paraphrasing his SHLD analysis: "Hey, there are so many ways to make money on this deal. It's either great or really great. I don't see any risk here." That's ridiculous. Why doesn't he display some balanced acumen (which, a-la-Buffett, creates long term confidence, not a just short-term hoped-for price movement via chatter) with points about risk or where his thesis has failed thus far? Don't other retail operations have valuable real estate? Come on. The "DieHard" brand? Get real. What a commodity. And as far as appliance brands, "Kenmore"? Seriously? Maytag had a wonderful brand name and recently went belly up. I don't see anyone clamoring to pay anything significant for that "brand equity". Brands ain't cash flow, friends. FAO Schwartz, anyone? PanAm? A million others... FYI, examples of actual brand value: GEICO. Coke. American Express. Hmmmmmm....

Further synopsis of Berkowitz: "Hey, Buffett bought a dying business and that was the start of his greatness..." Wow, that's illogical. No, Buffett dodged a bullet, and through skill and luck turned his holding company around with other investments. That's what he says anyway. Looking back, he never would have bought Hathaway; he'd have begun with the subsequent investments, no doubt. Banging your head on a rock and then finding a quarter on the ground doesn't mean you should go around banging your head on rocks.

Another Lampert-Buffett comparison point: Buffett never ran businesses. Lampert is trying to be a retail guy. Good luck with that vs. Wal-Mart, Target, Sears, Penneys, Lowes, Kohls, etc. etc. Also, Lampert is a young billionaire with a massive appetite for the high life, while at a similar age Buffett was just getting started with Hathaway, wearing rumpled suits and polyester-blend shirts in Omaha and eating gelatinous processed turkey sandwiches on white bread for his working lunches - very symbolic of a celebrity investor vs. a worker.

Lastly, look at Lampert's language; alternatively defensive, aggressive, frustrated, self-righteous...very, very un-Buffett-like. Despite his phenomenal track record, Berkowitz too is starting to sound more like Lampert than Buffett. Advice to Berkowitz: Re-read a few Buffett shareholder letters and balance out the commentary so your shareholders can learn something. Thanks then. Oh, and remember to thank your shareholders every time you deposit a paycheck, not the other way around. You are in a privileged position through skill and luck. Keep that ego strictly in check, or your investment results will falter.

Berkowitz, I daresay you owe your shareholders a detalied explanantion of your SHLD analysis, your new "core holding", given the eroding value, rather than a Lampert cheerleading session. Lampert has indisputably destroyed shareholder value recently with now deep-under-water share buybacks alone, and you're doing the same, no?

Bruce Berkowitz on Sears Holdings

First of all, thanks to seekingalpha and the community of quality posters. Good stuff.

Poster mdhobbit is right. And how about quantifying this vaunted real-estate value if it's so great? Why do I doubt it, given the attention Lampert has received?

As a substantial FAIRX holder, Berkowitz's comments sound disturbingly un-Buffett-like. Paraphrasing his SHLD analysis: "Hey, there are so many ways to make money on this deal. It's either great or really great. I don't see any risk here." That's ridiculous. Why doesn't he display some balanced acumen (which, a-la-Buffett, creates long term confidence, not a just short-term hoped-for price movement via chatter) with points about risk or where his thesis has failed thus far? Don't other retail operations have valuable real estate? Come on. The "DieHard" brand? Get real. What a commodity. And as far as appliance brands, "Kenmore"? Seriously? Maytag had a wonderful brand name and recently went belly up. I don't see anyone clamoring to pay anything for that "brand equity". Brands ain't cash flow, friends. FAO Schwartz, anyone? PanAm? A million others... FYI, examples of actual brand value: GEICO. Coke. American Express. Hmmmmmm....

Further synopsis: "Hey, Buffett bought a dying business and that was the start of his greatness..." Wow, that's illogical. No, Buffett dodged a bullet, and through skill and luck turned his holding company around with other investments. That's what he says anyway. Looking back, he never would have bought Hathaway; he'd have begun with the subsequent investments, no doubt. Banging your head on a rock and then finding a quarter on the ground doesn't mean you should go around banging your head on rocks.

Another Lampert-Buffett comparison point: Buffett never ran businesses. Lampert is trying to be a retail guy. Good luck with that vs. Wal-Mart, Target, Sears, Penneys, Lowes, Kohls, etc. etc. Also, Lampert is a young billionaire with a massive appetite for the high life, while at a similar age Buffett was just getting started with Hathaway, wearing rumpled suits and polyester-blend shirts in Omaha and eating gelatinous processed turkey sandwiches on white bread for his working lunches - very symbolic of a celebrity investor vs. a worker.

Lastly, look at Lampert's language; alternatively defensive, aggressive, frustrated, self-righteous...very, very un-Buffett-like. Despite his phenomenal track record, Berkowitz too is starting to sound more like Lampert than Buffett. Advice to Berkowitz: Re-read a few Buffett shareholder letters and balance out the commentary so your shareholders can learn something. Thanks then. Oh, and remember to thank your shareholders every time you deposit a paycheck, not the other way around. You are in a privileged position through skill and luck. Keep that ego strictly in check, or your investment results will falter.

I daresay you owe your shareholders a detalied explanantion of your SHLD analysis, given the eroding value, rather than a Lampert cheerleading session.