The Story Behind Warren Buffett's Favorite Candy Is More Than Just An Investment

Warren Buffett, or the Oracle of Omaha, as he is sometimes known, has built a career and fortune around his eye for sweet investments. He is, in some ways, an old-fashioned investor, one who doesn't seek a quick buck, but who instead digs deep into the heart of a company before making an investment, and often hangs onto those holdings for decades. And what better investment is there than a favorite candy brand? That was how the men at the helm of Berkshire Hathaway felt when the firm decided to acquire See's Candies, a California-based company known for its high-quality sweets — and the makers of Buffett's favorite peanut brittle and chocolate walnut fudge.

See's Candies got its start all the way back in 1921 in Los Angeles, California. Charles See was Canadian-born, and chose to immigrate to the U.S. from Ontario, Canada after losing his pharmacy chain to a wildfire. His 65 year-old widowed mother made the trip with him to the sunny southern coast, and on arrival they decided to start a confectionery business. Mary See, Charles' mother, had long managed a hotel in Ontario with her late husband. During this time, she was always at work behind the scenes, perfecting her sweets. These family recipes became the backbone of the business. The company has maintained a tradition of using fine ingredients for over a century. The evidence is clear, when you stack up See's Candies against other store-bought boxes of chocolates, theirs are made with an eye for detail. The brand has built a level of goodwill with customers that is cited as a major reason Buffett views See's as a "dream business."

It is hard to imagine that the exceptional quality of the product didn't catch Warren Buffett's attention when Berkshire Hathaway was considering acquiring the company in the early 1970s. Buffett's investment style is known as "value investing," and is primarily focused on deep research into the financials of a company with the intent to find entities that are currently undervalued on the market. Essentially, they are out there looking for a deal that no one else has yet noticed — and a brand that had seen out the Great Depression with savvy business ideas and continued to bring superior goods to a loyal group of customers certainly could be seen as a value. But, as it turns out, it was actually Buffett's partner, Charlie Munger, who pushed the See's Candies deal forward for Berkshire Hathaway.

Munger saw the brand-loyalty of See's Candies customers, people who had been buying their chocolates for 50 years at the time. While Buffett was cautious of the $25 million price tag, Munger saw a stable workhorse with a long future ahead of it. In the end, Munger managed to convince Buffett, and Berkshire Hathaway purchased the company in 1972 for the full $25 million, roughly three-times the book value. The acquisition was a break from the norm for them, as the numbers didn't quite add up, but it was also a step that would redefine their entire investment strategy.

With See's Candies, Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger were looking past the numbers, and focusing instead on what are considered to be less-tangible investment factors. It was the strength of the brand, the quality of the product, and the loyalty of the customer base that made See's Candies an attractive investment, not its financials at the time.

In the end, the See's Candies deal has been a roaring success for the investment firm. Purchasing the company initially cost Berkshire Hathaway $25 million, and down the road the holding company invested an additional $40 million, but the profits generated since that purchase come in at around $2 billion — not a bad return on investment, that. The trick turned out to be steadily increasing the price of See's Candies, slowly turning a low-profitability company with a strong following into a confectionery juggernaut. But See's Candies has been more than just an investment to Buffett. It is also his favorite candy company, as evidenced by the fact that See's Candies products are always available at Berkshire Hathaway shareholders meetings.

At the end of 2025, Buffett will step down as the chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, but there is no doubt that he will continue to nibble on that famous peanut brittle. Likewise, there is no doubt that See's Candies will continue to produce its quality confectionery products. Whether it is the famous See's Candies appearance on "I Love Lucy," or the more recent "Lollypalooza" candy flavors from the brand, it is clear that this classic confectionery is a part of American culture, isn't going anywhere soon.