Wealthy Swiss investors have a weird flex: a blue briefcase filled with 10 pounds of chocolate

· Business Insider

Lindt hands out chocolate-filled briefcases to voting shareholders each year.

Lindt & Sprüngli

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  • Swiss investors showcase their wealth each April by carrying blue briefcases filled with chocolate.
  • Lindt gifts them to voting shareholders each year, but a share costs around $100,000.
  • One local investor described the "quirky tradition" as a "very Swiss kind of flex."

From Patagonia vests to Rolex Submariners, the finance world is full of status symbols and fashion flexes. Wealthy Swiss investors have one of the weirdest: a blue briefcase filled with roughly 10 pounds of chocolate.

Lindt shareholders who vote at the Swiss chocolatier's annual meeting in Zurich every April receive a "Schokoladekoffer" or "chocolate suitcase."

The briefcase is free, but a Lindt voting share costs around 78,000 Swiss francs, or more than $94,000. The shares have traded as high as 132,000 Swiss francs — north of $150,000 — within the past year.

"Nobody rationally spends around 100,000 Swiss francs on a share because they want 3kg of free chocolate," Thierry Borgeat, the cofounder and chief investor of Swiss asset manager arvy, told Business Insider by email on Monday. "But that is exactly what makes it fun."

"It's a flex — but a very Swiss kind of flex," Borgeat continued. "You don't buy a Ferrari or a flashy watch to show people you have money. You own one registered share in a 180-year-old Swiss chocolate company, attend the annual meeting, and then quietly walk through Zurich carrying three kilograms of chocolate in a blue suitcase."

Borgeat recalled that when he worked in wealth management, clients and private bankers would bring their sweet hauls to the office after the annual meeting and share their bars and truffles.

Doing so "had the convenient side effect of letting everyone know that you owned a full Lindt registered share," he said.

Borgeat noted the "quirky tradition has become so exclusive" because Lindt has been an "exceptional long-term investment," resulting in its shares becoming "extraordinarily valuable over time."

Lindt stock climbed from around 3,600 Swiss francs in April 1995 to 132,000 at its peak last October, a 36-fold increase. But it has slumped in recent months as record temperatures have sapped sales, and historically high cocoa prices have inflated the chocolatier's costs and crimped its profits.

Why Lindt rewards its investors

"We consider this a thank you for their efforts," a Lindt & Sprüngli spokesperson told Business Insider about the company's yearly gift to voting shareholders.

"The box contains a variety of Lindt products such as Excellence bars and Lindor truffles, but we don't reveal what's exactly inside because it's meant to be a surprise for our shareholders," the spokesperson added.

Lawrence Cunningham, the director of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware, said the gift boxes were "good marketing and a thoughtful gesture."

"It thanks shareholders for showing up and puts the company's product in their hands," he said, adding that it also fosters goodwill.

The buzzy phenomenon is reminiscent of Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting. Every May, thousands of shareholders from across the world fly to Warren Buffett's hometown of Omaha, not only to see the legendary investor in person, but also to load up on discounted wares from Berkshire's many businesses, including boxed-chocolate maker See's Candies.

Borgeat said he can "definitely see the similarities" between Berkshire and Lindt as "companies that become more than just investments — they create a sense of identity and community among their shareholders."

"Berkshire has Omaha and See's Candies," he continued. "Lindt has Zurich and the blue chocolate suitcase."

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