Collects Native American and Chinese art. Has written or contributed to 13 books. In the past few years, textile tycoon Robert B. Pamplin Jr. has plowed tens of millions of dollars into nut and berry farming, Christian entertainment, two retail chains, a winery and a motley collection of other bedrock ventures. It's an unlikely collection, including industries many investors are shying away from. Farmers, especially small family farmers, are ditching the business, pinched by poor crop prices and rising costs.
Retailers are out of fashion, too, as many investors fear a glut of stores and chase newer ventures.
Pamplin said he ignores business fashions when picking his investments. Rather, he follows moral and financial values that seem either quaint or refreshingly sane in today's boiling economy. Keep your investments local, so you can watch them. Figure out how to cut costs and expand sales. His farm grows more filberts than any in Oregon, and his stores sell more Bibles than any in the Northwest.