Prepare for take-off

Flight Centre has posed two conundrums for investors over the years: its wild cyclicality and the overarching threat of the internet to its bricks-and-mortar business model. The former has made it difficult to assess a base level for earnings and the latter has made it hard to value them.

Ironically, the Covid-19 pandemic may have solved both. For once we know exactly where we are in the cycle – right at the bottom.

While the closure of half its stores will hasten the company’s move to a more sustainable business model, based on corporate travel, the challenge now is