Thomas Cook: How the World's Oldest Travel Firm Ran Out of Cash (It Wasn't the Heatwave)

On 23 September 2019, Thomas Cook stopped trading and about 150,000 travellers were stranded abroad. The business dated back to 1841 and served about 22 million customers a year, with £9.6 billion of revenue in its last full year. But net debt jumped from £40 million to £1.25 billion in eighteen months, a £1.1 billion goodwill write-off exposed the 2007 MyTravel merger, and a final rescue fell £200 million short. Here is the full rise and ruin of Thomas Cook, from Operation Matterhorn to what MPs found and the £9 billion of liabilities left behind, plus the lessons for anyone running a business. 0:00 Intro 0:59 Part 1: The rise 1:56 Part 2: The merger and the debt 3:24 Part 3: The cracks 4:42 Part 4: The fall 8:02 Why Thomas Cook really failed 8:59 Lessons for your business SOURCES (all charts and timelines are our own, made from these): Insolvency Service / GOV.UK: Report by the Official Receiver on the Thomas Cook Group companies (in liquidation) https://assets.publishing.service.gov... Redditch Standard: Thomas Cook rival buys all stores potentially saving up to 2,500 jobs https://redditchstandard.co.uk/news/t... Axios: Thomas Cook collapses: 150,000 travelers stranded https://www.axios.com/2019/09/23/thom... AFP via Arab News: UK completes Thomas Cook repatriation of passengers https://www.arabnews.com/business/uk-... Travel Weekly: MPs issue damning report into collapse of Thomas Cook https://travelweekly.co.uk/news/mps-i... City AM: Thomas Cook collapse: MPs slam government inaction and lack of audit reform https://www.cityam.com/thomas-cook-se... City AM: Thomas Cook share price crashes as it suffers 'grim' £1.45bn loss https://www.cityam.com/?p=1024974 City AM: Bankruptcy watchdog clears Thomas Cook bosses of wrongdoing https://www.cityam.com/?p=1826492 City AM: Thomas Cook creditors to receive £280m five years after travel chain collapsed https://cityam.com/?p=2197120 Peterborough Today: Peterborough holiday giant slides into the red as losses hit £163 million https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/b... Reuters via Business Standard: Thomas Cook cuts profit forecast again due to weak British market https://www.business-standard.com/amp... London Stock Exchange RNS via lse.co.uk: Thomas Cook Group full year results 2017 https://www.lse.co.uk/rns/TCG/thomas-... Langton Capital: Thomas Cook full year numbers to end-Sep 2015 (broker note) https://www.langtoncapital.co.uk/wp-c... Langton Capital: Thomas Cook full year numbers 2014 (broker note) https://www.langtoncapital.co.uk/wp-c... Fox News: Thomas Cook brand bought by Chinese company Fosun Tourism https://foxnews.com/travel/thomas-coo... Figures are in nominal pounds sterling unless stated, and come from the filings and reports above. Some series mix restated years; see the sources for detail. This video is commentary and education, not financial advice. Narration uses an AI voice. #ThomasCook #BusinessHistory #RiseAndRuin