Fifteen years ago, Warren Buffett added carpet manufacturing to his Berkshire Hathaway (US:BRK) empire. Georgia-based Shaw Industries matched many of Mr Buffett's tried and tested investment criteria: it was cheap, possessed excellent management, a simple business model and came with the promise of longevity.
Durability is an important property in both carpets and companies. Aim-traded Victoria (VCP) is a good example of the latter and a fairly renowned producer of the former. Founded in 1895 and first listed in 1963, for much of its history it has plugged away as a high-quality if low-key business. That was until 2011, when things abruptly changed. In December that year, not long after making the red carpet for the royal wedding, Victoria's board told shareholders a consortium was preparing to replace several non-executives with a new management team.