#227 Outliers: Rose Blumkin — Women of Berkshire Hathaway

The Knowledge Project with Shane Parrish

Farnam Street

Business, Investing, Entrepreneurship

4.7 • 2.9K Ratings

🗓️ 6 May 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Rose Blumkin didn’t just build a business. She revolutionized retail. After fleeing Russia with $66 in her purse, she opened a basement furniture store in Omaha at 43 years old—with no English, no education, and no connections. Her formula? Sell cheap, tell the truth, don't cheat the customer. Nebraska Furniture Mart would survive depressions, fires, lawsuits, tornadoes—and eventually become a billion-dollar empire Warren Buffett called “the ideal business.” Learn how Mrs. B’s relentless focus, radical simplicity, and unbreakable work ethic built an empire from scratch—and what her story teaches us about business, resilience, and the power of earned trust. This episode is for informational purposes only and most of the research came from "Women of Berkshire Hathaway" and oral history interviews with Rose Blumkin and her daughter Frances. (03:20) PART 1: Early Childhood (07:10) A Natural Entrepreneur (09:37) PART 2: Building an Empire (12:53) The Competition (15:54) The Passing of Isadore (18:32) Expansion through Hardship (20:32) Natural Instinct for Character (25:15) PART 3: The $60m Handshake / The Buffett Connection (28:25) A Rebel at 96 (33:47) Reflections, afterthoughts, and lessons Thanks to our sponsors for supporting this episode: MOMENTOUS: Head to ⁠livemomentous.com⁠ and use code KNOWLEDGEPROJECT for 35% off your first subscription. NOTION MAIL: Get Notion Mail for free right now at notion.com/knowledgeproject Check out highlights from this books in our repository, and find key lessons from Blumkin here — fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/outliers-rose-blumkin Upgrade — If you want to hear my thoughts and reflections at the end of all episodes, join our membership: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠fs.blog/membership⁠⁠⁠ and get your own private feed. Newsletter — The Brain Food newsletter delivers actionable insights and thoughtful ideas every Sunday. It takes 5 minutes to read, and it’s completely free. Learn more and sign up at ⁠fs.blog/newsletter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's the 1950s in Omaha. Three well-paid Mohawk carpet attorneys square off against a 4-10 immigrant widow named Rose Blumpkin.
0:12.1	They accuse her of one outrageous act, selling carpet at prices ordinary people can afford.
0:18.8	I picture her standing there, adjusting her glasses,
0:21.6	then telling the judge in a thick Russian accent,
0:25.6	Judge, I sell everything 10% above cost.
0:28.6	What's wrong with giving my customers a good deal?
0:31.6	I know what it's like to be poor.
0:33.6	Silence.
0:34.6	And then the gavel comes down.
0:36.6	Case dismissed. The next morning, that same judge
0:41.8	walks into Rose's basement store and buys $1,400 worth of carpet. It's the first of many
0:47.3	miracles at Nebraska Furniture Mark. Miracles born of one stubborn motto, sell cheap, tell the truth, don't cheat the customer.
0:55.9	How did this penniless refugee build a billion-dollar empire,
0:59.8	and why did Warren Buffett later say he'd rather wrestle Grizzlies than compete with Miss B?
1:04.4	Let's find out.
1:05.3	Music Welcome to the Knowledge Project. I'm your host, Shane Parrish.
1:25.2	In a world where knowledge is power, this podcast is your toolkit for mastering the best of what other people have already figured out.
1:32.6	In a world where MBA programs teach complex business strategies and consultants sell elaborate frameworks,
1:39.2	one woman built an empire by taking three simple ideas very seriously.
1:45.1	Sell cheap, tell the truth, don't cheat the customer.
1:48.5	When the world's greatest investor, Warren Buffett met Rose Blumpkin, he said simply,
1:52.6	I'd rather wrestle Grizzlies than compete with Miss B.
	...

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