A closer look
Sometimes the absolute cheapest way to run a business is exactly what destroys it overnight. Vintage capital theory dictates that older equipment becomes increasingly obsolete, but companies delay upgrading to avoid massive capital expenditures. Southwest Airlines played this game for decades, milking their outdated 1990s crew-scheduling software to maintain industry-leading profit margins. The depreciation cycle finally snapped during a winter storm, triggering a multi-billion dollar systemic collapse.
