Mumbai: Flix, the largest intercity bus operator in Europe and owner of Greyhound, will enter the Indian market next year, and said it expects to be an alternative to low-cost airlines, trains and individual transport. India is one of the largest bus markets in the world and FlixBus’ first inter-city green lines are scheduled to launch in early 2024 and connect major hubs, with expansion into the interior as it builds scale.
“With India’s economic growth, increasing demand for sustainable and safe collective travel options, and online travel booking’ systems growing significantly, we see immense potential for growth in the region and India becoming one of the largest Flix markets globally,” André Schwämmlein, co-founder and CEO of Flix told ET, adding that buses are forming the backbone of transport in India and its market size is larger than Europe, Turkey and North America combined.
The Indian government’s target is to develop 2 lakh km of national highway network by 2025. Flix operates in more than 40 countries and carried close to 300 million travellers in over 5,500 destinations globally. In 2022, the decade old company posted revenues of 1.5 billion Euros.
FlixMobility, owner of FlixBus, bought US-based popular transport firm Greyhound two years ago. In India, the company has already initiated the process of forming a local team and has appointed Surya Khurana as the country managing director.
The Germany headquartered company will have an asset light model, relying on partnering local bus companies that have expertise to maintain daily operations, including bus fleet management. The company said it is a technology company and not an aggregator or a meta searcher.
“Flix is planning to invest substantially in the Indian market and this also includes a significant investment into our commercial development, online and offline marketing, and sales. Our focus here lies in implementing highly-scalable solutions that have demonstrated the biggest impact in attracting new customers and enhancing brand awareness within the markets we operate,” added Schwämmlein.
A recent Crisil report said leading operators in the Indian tours and travel sector are set to report operating profits in fiscal 2023, after having reported losses for the past two financial years due to pandemic induced travel restrictions. While operating profitability is expected to check in at 6-7%, revenue should drive past 90% of pre-pandemic levels, buoyed by strong recovery in both, corporate and leisure travel segments in India and abroad.
Flix said it became the national network in its first region, Germany, within months and was a European market leader for long-distance travel in only four years after its launch, setting new standards for collective transport travelers. It said it is planning to build the most competitive bus network in India too.
“One of the core reasons for Flix’s success is that it has been able to find the right product-market fit to meet the needs of the customer in each geography that it enters. In India, we believe that there is a large and growing demand for safe, comfortable, and reliable intercity travel. Our go-to-market strategy will focus on addressing these needs by offering a high-quality product at a competitive price. We understand that Indian customers are extremely cost conscious,” said Khurana.
