The story of AirAsia is almost like a fairy tale. Co-founders, Tan Sri Tony Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun bought over a failing airline for a token sum of RM1.00. They then built it up to become one of the largest low-cost carriers in the world.
Today, AirAsia continues to grow aggressively. Its revenue has grown from RM2.6 billion in 2008 to close to RM7.0 billion at the end of 2016. The company has also launched multiple associate airlines in many countries outside of Malaysia and a new long-haul low-cost carrier, AirAsia X. Yet, the airline industry continues to be one of the hardest industries to be in. Warren Buffett has famously commented that airline stocks are a “death trap for investors” (Although he has recently changed his mind by investing in most of the major U.S. airlines).
Although AirAsia’s revenue has been growing quite ......