As we began 2022, I have 2 stories to share with you. One from the US & one from INDIA. Both of these stories have impacted my thought process & continue to motivate me. Both of them are ordinary people but with some extraordinary achievements. I am hoping reading their stories will inspire you too.

Story of Ronald Read: $273K to $8 Million!

Born in 1921, to an impoverished farmer's family. He served his nation during World War II. Later he was a mechanic at a gas station for 25 years (1945- 1970), then he was the Janitor, sweeping JC Penny's floors for 17 Years ( 1970 - 1987). Post that he retired & stayed in his modest 2 BHK house. He died in 2014, at the age of 92. It was then that the world discovered what he has amassed over multiple decades.

In his will, the ex-janitor left US$2 million to his stepchildren and US$6 million to his local library and hospital.

How on earth can a Janitor be a Millionaire? That's when the world realized that he was silently buying good quality companies over decades from his modest Salary. No, he was NOT an MBA, neither did he read Research Reports, all he did was observe - which products sold the most in the US and just kept buying those company shares. Some of his major holdings were: AT&T, P&G, General Motors, Bank of America, GE, J&J.

His criteria were very simple - Companies that paid Dividends, their products were quite popular and the company should be known for high levels of Ethics. He lived a frugal life and his hobby was investing. Read saved what little he could and invested only $273K over decades into blue-chip stocks. Then he waited, for decades, which eventually compounded into more than $8 million.

Learning: All you need to create wealth is BUYING QUALITY COMPANIES FOR DECADES.

Story of  Md.Anwar : Rs.10,000 to Rs. 1830 Crores!

Amanler is a small town in the Jalgaon district of  Maharashtra. On December 29th, 1945, a businessman from Mumbai, Muhamed Husain Hasham Premji, registered Western India Vegetable Products Limited after buying an oil mill in Amalner. Kindly note Western Indian Vegetable Products Limited was the erstwhile name of WPRO, the rebranding had happened only in the 1970s when Azim Premji took charge after his father's demise. 

The year was 1980 and Md. Anwar Ahmed, a resident of Amanler, then 27 years old, bought shares worth Rs.10,000, thus owning 100 shares of WIPRO, with a Face Value of 100 each. Thus began a journey, which continues to amaze people.

In 1981, WIPRO declared a 1:1 bonus. He now had 200 shares.
In 1985, WIPRO declared 1:1 bonus. He now had 400 shares.
In 1986, WIPRO split the share to Rs.10. He now had 4000 shares.
In 1987, WIPRO declared 1:1 bonus. He now had 8000 shares.
In 1989, WIPRO announced a 1:1 bonus. He now had 16,000 shares.
In 1992,WIPRO declared a 1:1 bonus. He now had 32,000 shares.
In 1995, WIPRO declared a 1:1 bonus. He now had 64,000 shares.
In 1997, WIPRO declared 2:1 bonus. He now had 1,92,000 shares.
In 1999, WIPRO split the share to Rs.2. He now had 9,60,000 shares.
In 2004,WIPRO declared 2:1 bonus. He now had 28,80,000 shares.
In 2005, WIPRO declared 1:1 bonus. He now had 57,60,000 shares.
In 2010, WIPRO declared 2:3 bonus. He now had 96,00,000 shares. In 2017, WIPRO declared 1:1 bonus. He now had 1,92,00,000 shares. In 2019, WIPRO declared 1:3 bonus. By then he had amassed 2.64 Crore Shares !!

The current Markert Price of WIPO's share is Rs.715/share. Thus his networth of WIPRO shares is 1830 Crores.

Over the last 40 years, Mr. Anwar has received Dividends in Hundreds of Crores and he donates them towards Charity. Mr.Anwar says that he will NOT sell a single share till Mr. Azim Premji is the Chairman of Wipro. He continues to compound wealth. When asked why he invested & still holds Wipro shares, his response is simple: "We trust Sethji".

Kindly note Amanler has thousands of people, everyone had the information about WIPRO, but only a few bought the shares, and most importantly only Mr.Anwar has been holding onto the shares for more than 40 years.

Learning: All you need to create wealth is LONG TERM MINDSET. 

I sincerely hope both of these real-life stories give you the desire to play the game of long-term wealth creation. 

Wishing you a Happy Investing New Year 2022.

#MadAboutStocks