Thousands of shareholders are heading to Omaha this weekend for the annual Berkshire Hathaway meeting, where Greg Abel will preside over the official gathering Saturday at CHI Health Center arena downtown. Warren Buffett retired in December, and the meeting now lands with Abel firmly in charge of the company’s most closely watched annual ritual.
Related events get started Friday, but the crowds often begin showing up before then. Visitors may start arriving at Eppley Airfield on Thursday, and downtown Omaha and Blackstone can feel the run-up as early as Wednesday as shareholders, families and bargain hunters fan out across the city. This weekend is one of Omaha’s biggest tourist stretches of the year, and the calendar is packed from the start.
Shareholders attending the meeting at CHI Health Center Arena may bring small purses, clutches and wallets no larger than 4.5 x 6.5 inches. Other bags must be transparent and uncolored, though gallon-sized plastic freezer bags are also allowed. Luggage and backpacks can be checked outside the building near Meca Drive on Friday and Saturday, with a second baggage check available Saturday near the plaza-level entrance.
Credentials can be picked up at CHI Health Center Arena from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, while Sunday 5K packets are available from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Peak Performance Pop-up at 501 N. 13th St. Berkshire’s shareholder-only shopping events run Friday from noon to 5 p.m. at the exhibit hall, and an exclusive shareholder shopping event at Borsheims jewelry store runs Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. NFM’s discount period began Saturday, April 22, and continues through Tuesday, May 5.
The main event opens Saturday at 7 a.m., with the welcome and business update scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Two question-and-answer sessions are set for 9:30 a.m. and 11:45 a.m., with livestreamed coverage starting at CNBC.com at 9:15 a.m. The actual shareholders meeting gets underway at 2 p.m. Saturday. Later that day, the NFM Berkshire picnic runs from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at NFM, while Borsheims continues shareholder-only shopping from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The weekend comes as Omaha’s streetcar construction is heavily underway downtown and along the route that serves a popular pilgrimage to Buffett’s office location, while Eppley Airfield’s expansion work continues after reaching the halfway mark in March. A limited shuttle service will be provided for shareholders, helping connect a city under construction with the annual gathering that still draws thousands.
