Flixbus

Flixbus mobility provider Europe
FlixBus
Private
Industry Transport, Travel, Travel technology
Founded 2011
Founders Daniel Krauss, Jochen Engert, André Schwämmlein
Headquarters Munich, Berlin
Area served
 Europe
Services Intercity bus service
Subsidiaries Paris, Milan
Website www.flixbus.com

FlixBus is a mobility provider offering daily intercity bus service all over Europe. Launched in 2013 after the deregulation of the German mobility market, FlixBus aimed to establish a new means of transport as "reliable and green alternative" to Carpooling and the German railway Deutsche Bahn.[1] After the merger with the competing startup MeinFernbus it became Germany's undisputed market leader.[2] It operates 71% of the German market (measured in kilometres, driven by the company).[3] FlixBus is now rapidly expanding across Europe. The company's expansion is financially backed by the global growth equity firm General Atlantic[4] and investors like Holtzbrinck Ventures.[5]

Business model

FlixBus runs on an international mobility platform by cooperating with regional bus companies from all over Europe. These local buspartners are responsible for the day-to-day running of routes, while FlixBus is in charge of the official authorizations required to operate the long-distance network. The FlixBus team handles network planning, marketing, pricing, quality management and the customer service. This unique business model leads to a high scalability and has allowed a tremendous speed of international growth.[6]

Speed of expansion

FlixBus was founded 2011 in Munich by Daniel Krauss, Jochen Engert and André Schwämmlein and launched its first route in February 2013 in Germany. One year later in 2014, FlixBus already operated a nationwide network. Along with the merger with MeinFernbus, the company also announced the internationalization of its business model. In summer 2015 FlixBus launched its Italian subsidiary in Milan[7] and entered the recently liberalized French market with "FlixBus France".[8] In November 2015 FlixBus announced its new entity FlixBus B.V. in the Netherlands and with this the very first national Dutch intercity bus network. After Germany, France and Italy, this is the company's fourth national market,[9] while the company's international lines also connect cities in Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden and Denmark.[10]

In January 2016 FlixBus announced its entry to the markets of Central and Eastern Europe with the new branch FlixBus CEE. This includes six countries (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia and Croatia) with new lines in the making.[11][12] In March 2016, company launched first lines to the United Kingdom and Spain.[13]

The network

The network includes approximately 80.000 daily connections to 700 destinations in 18 countries.[14] In the beginning of 2016 the company announced its plan of building a sustainable long-distance network from Bordeaux to Bucharest.[15]

Services and sustainability

The provider emphasizes the sustainability of its long-distance buses, lower prices and free Wi-Fi on board. Customers can voluntarily compensate their individual CO2 emissions during the online booking process. The amount of the compensation is between 1-3% of the ticket price and goes to internationally certified climate projects to offset the equivalent of CO2 emissions.[16]

References

  1. ↑ Zach Netzer (17 December 2014). "Derailing the Train: How Intercity Buses Are Changing the Way We Travel in Germany".
  2. ↑ anbieten., Der Eindruck auf der Autobahn täuscht nicht, wenn Autofahrer das Gefühl haben, alle Augenblicke Fernbusse zu sehen. Täglich sind es bundesweit mehr als 1.300 Fahrten, die die Fernbuslinien derzeit (2015-11-08). "Fernbusmarkt wächst weiter | MDR.DE". www.mdr.de (in German). Retrieved 2015-11-11.
  3. ↑ "Fernbusmarkt startet stabil ins neue Jahr". IGES Institute. 9 February 2016.
  4. ↑ Dieter Fockenbrock (9 January 2015). "Ticket to Ride – A merger between Germany's two largest long-distance bus operators has rattled the country's state-owned rail company".
  5. ↑ Ingrid Lunden (16 January 2015). "Holtzbrinck Ventures Closes $331M Fund To Back More Consumer And E-Commerce Startups".
  6. ↑ "Mobility Challengers – Company Presentation by Jochen Engert, Founder & Managing Director of FlixBus at the NOAH 2015 Conference in Berlin". 10 June 2015.
  7. ↑ "FlixBus: viaggiare per l'Italia spendendo solo 1 euro e 9 euro per l'Europa". 4 August 2015.
  8. ↑ "Autocars: l'allemand FlixBus se lance en France". 19 May 2015.
  9. ↑ "FlixBus opent netwerk intercitybussen in Nederland". 24 November 2015.
  10. ↑ Di Lucchio, Maurizio (12 August 2015). "Flixbus, la startup degli autobus low cost che vuole creare 1.000 posti di lavoro".
  11. ↑ Johnston, Raymond (14 January 2016). "FlixBus expands international service from Czech cities".
  12. ↑ "Blaguss fährt mit deutschem Flixbus nach Osteuropa". 21 January 2016.
  13. ↑ "FlixBus enters UK". 24 March 2016.
  14. ↑ Davies, Phil (16 March 2016). "Low-cost coach operator enters UK market".
  15. ↑ Eder-Kornfeld, Rosa (21 January 2016). "Blaguss und FlixBus spannen grünes Netz in Europa".
  16. ↑ "Ein grünes Netz von Bordeaux bis Bukarest!". 22 January 2016.

External links

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