Over a history spanning more than 250 years, Faber-Castell has seen its fair share of crises, including wars, hyperinflation and the expropriation of foreign locations. And in the time since the present head took sole charge of the company, there have been three major threats: the collapse of the slide rule business in the late 1970s, which had accounted for just under a third of revenue; the sudden drop in sales of manual technical drawing instruments due to computer-aided design (CAD) in the late 1980s; and the burst of the dot-com bubble in the 1990s, which economically ruined many investors, including the company’s most important US customers. What saved Faber-Castell from going under in these crises was not a belief in revolutionary innovations, but rather a focus on core values and core competencies — in line with the philosophy of sticking to what you do best. “That sounds dull, but it’s a surprisingly simply recipe for success,” explains the Count. He also sees this confirmed by Warren Buffett, who recognized that the best investment activity is greeted by yawns rather than applause.