# The Pritzkers - Commoncog Case Library
**URL:** https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799
**Category:** Blog Comments
**Created:** [September 28, 2026, 5:48am UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799 "2026-09-28T05:48:00Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@cedric](https://forum.commoncog.com/u/cedric)
#### Post date: [September 28, 2026, 5:48am UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799/1 "2026-09-28T05:48:00Z")
One early morning in 1957, Jay Pritzker was wandering the halls of Los Angeles International Airport. His red-eye flight from Chicago had just landed. Disembarking the airplane, it was half past six: “_too late to get some sleep, too early to do anything,_” as he put it. Pritzker’s work had kept him up most of the night. But the bleary-eyed businessman wasn’t going to miss an appointment.
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This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at [https://commoncog.com/c/cases/the-pritzkers/](https://commoncog.com/c/cases/the-pritzkers/)
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### Author:  [@TylerD](https://forum.commoncog.com/u/TylerD)
#### Post date: [October 4, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799/2 "2026-10-04T23:02:23Z")
I’ve done some other reading on the Pritzkers (via Rockwood Notes) and the Colson deal was definitely a representative Pritzker buy.
Jay gets a call from a broker letting him know it’s for sale. The view was the liquidation price was probably higher than purchase price, so downside was low. Apparently the illiquid stock was trading for $18/share, book value was $42, and management wanted $30. Then the tax code came in handy. Apparently, if bought below book value, they could write off 50% the difference between price and book of $24 per share, which is $12. The $18 plus the effective $12 in additional cash delivered the $30 management wanted. (I think Buffett also talked about being first impressed by Jay Pritzker because he had a clever read of the tax code to profit on the Rockwood chocolate company.)
Even with that tax benefit on Colson, they put up only 5% of the purchase price because, as mentioned in the case, First National Bank of Chicago provided a loan. First National was a huge Pritzker advantage:
> We’ve been 55 years at the First. We were practically running that bank. Ours is the only family in America I ever heard of where every member was up to the statutory limit [for loans]. That’s the kind of relationship we had.
> Jay explained: “Because of Dad I could get anything from the bank, even if the request was unreasonable.”
Also, safe to say they basically effectuated into the groove of buying distressed assets? While they had the Pritzker name and borrowing ability, the Jay/Bob/Donald generation wasn’t starting with a massive pile of cash. So distressed assets were cheap and what they could afford at first. Then they became good at the turnarounds, so they seized the opportunities like the lumber business they stumbled on because it fit their ability.
> “We could only afford to buy troubled companies,” Bob remarked. “We had to buy from people who were desperate to sell. If the deals were good, if the businesses were solid and straightforward, they were beyond our means.”
> “And their owners didn’t need us,” said Jay. “The ones that were available were headaches and problems. Fortunately, for Bob, not for me.”
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### Author:  [@cedric](https://forum.commoncog.com/u/cedric)
#### Post date: [October 4, 2026, 11:02pm UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799/3 "2026-10-04T23:02:24Z")
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### Author:  [@cedric](https://forum.commoncog.com/u/cedric)
#### Post date: [October 5, 2026, 1:51am UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799/4 "2026-10-05T01:51:52Z")
Oh, where were these quotes from? I scoured the web for more Pritzker sources but couldn’t find that many, because the family (especially that generation) seems to like their privacy.
I do remember reading something about the bank relationship though. It was in the Darby book; perhaps I should have included it in the case. It just so happens that A.N. had a good relationship with First National and that translated to good credit with Jay. (Or rather Jay’s generation).
Also, edited to add: the effectuation thing is a big part of their story for me. Hyatt ended up being one of the big four chains but nobody could’ve imagined that when Jay bought it to be an airport hotel chain. And Bob definitely did not know he would get so good at turnarounds he’d built an industrials conglomerate.
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### Author:  [@TylerD](https://forum.commoncog.com/u/TylerD)
#### Post date: [October 5, 2026, 4:17pm UTC](https://forum.commoncog.com/t/the-pritzkers-commoncog-case-library/3799/5 "2026-10-05T16:17:36Z")
They appear to be from an unpublished company history document written by a former employee. I’ll send you the article where I read from. The Darby book was also a source.
Case was great. I just had this other Pritzker reading in my memory so I went back to it after reading this case.
“…but nobody could’ve imagined that when” [Company A or Operator A] started – this phrase hit me a certain way, I think it gets at the essence of why business and cases of business success are endlessly interesting.