They wait in the rain to see Warren Buffett. Will they still flock to Omaha when he’s gone?

The masses had not descended to catch a weathered rock star’s farewell tour, but the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, a conglomerate, chaired by a nonagenarian billionaire: Warren Buffett, 93, was about to take the stage.

Buffett and Charlie Munger – who died last year, aged 99 – amassed a legion of followers by transforming Berkshire Hathaway from a struggling textiles manufacturer into a sprawling global conglomerate – and generating handsome returns for shareholders along the way.

Back in 2022, shortly after opening Godega Market, a corner store and cafe, owners David Kerr, 35, and his partner,Nate Flick, 34, were still working the counter when they heard the impact of Berkshire’s annual meeting.

Both its architects were born there, and the executives tapped to lead it forward – Abel, 61, who already oversees Berkshire’s non-insurance businesses, and Ajit Jain, its vice chairman of insurance operations, 72 – previously lived in the city.

But this firm was built around a fanbase: not just shareholders, but a unique, dedicated community of followers, who travel far and wide to catch the big show, buy the merch, and jostle to get close to the stage.

In years to come, on the morning of the firm’s annual meeting, those in charge could do worse than wander Omaha’s streets, and count how many investors remain willing to line up before sunrise for the best seats in the house.