Omaha's annual pilgrimage to Berkshire Hathaway's (BRK.B, Financial) shareholder meeting is a far cry from its humble origins in a lunchroom break area.

Back in the 1970s, Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio) would kick off the meeting with a simple “Meeting in Progress” sign on some coffee-stained doors, gather about 20 friends, family and early investors, and breeze through the formalities in five minutes flat. Then he'd grab a vending-machine soda and spend the next hour chatting about markets, investments and whatever else was on people's minds—no PowerPoints, no flash, just Buffett's trademark folksy wisdom.

As Berkshire's empire grew through the '80s and '90s—expanding from textiles into insurance, furniture, candy and beyond—the meeting outgrew that breakroom and migrated to the Red Lion Hilton, the Orpheum Theatre and eventually a 10,000-seat convention hall.

Buffett cleverly turned the event into a mini expo, showcasing See's Candies, Nebraska Furniture Mart and Fruit of the Loom under one roof. When Bill Gates (Trades, Portfolio) joined the board in 2004, the meeting got even more star power, capped off by the now-legendary newspaper-tossing contest where attendees (and yes, Gates himself) launch rolled-up papers at a mock Clayton Homes porch—winners scoring Dairy Queen Dilly Bars as prizes.

Today, some 40,000 investors from around the globe descend on the CHI Health Center for what's been dubbed “Woodstock for Capitalists.” The formal business meeting still lasts about 20 minutes, but the marathon Q&A with Buffett and the late Charlie Munger can stretch past five hours.

Between sampling popcorn at vendor booths, swapping notes in crowded corridors and lining up for impromptu chats, shareholders forge real connections to Berkshire's diverse businesses—and to one another. What began as a modest coffee-break gabfest has become a living testament to Buffett's philosophy: start small, think big and always put people at the heart of the story.