Flixbus has announced record numbers to mark the tenth anniversary of the first trip. With worldwide sales of over €1.5 billion, positive EBITDA and an 185% increase in sales compared to 2021, 2022 was the most successful year in Flix’s history. The group continues to grow far ahead of Blablacar!
Over 60 million passengers in 40 countries in 2022
These millions of customers used the services of FlixBus, FlixTrain, Greyhound in North America and Kamil Koç in Turkey. Since the company was founded, Flix has transported nearly 300 million passengers. “2022 has been our most successful year yet,” says André Schwämmlein, co-founder and CEO of Flix. “It shows that Flix is positioning itself more than ever in a very attractive growth market – we stand for modern mobility, sustainability and digitalisation. And we still have many projects for the years to come.
Record growth for all subsidiaries
In 2022, the Flix Group, which includes FlixBus, FlixTrain, Greyhound and Kamil Koç, achieved a turnover of more than 1.5 billion euros and a positive EBITDA. Despite COVID travel restrictions in many countries in the first quarter of the year, more than 60 million people used the long-distance bus and train services offered by Flix and its partners. Flix operates in a total of 40 countries on four continents. “We see that all of our markets have recovered very well from the pandemic. We will continue to strengthen our position in established markets while expanding our offer in new countries to enable even more people to have green mobility,” says Schwämmlein. Flix expects revenue growth of more than 20% in 2023. For 2023, the company also expects further growth in profitability.
Flibus operates in 35 countries in Europe
Flix operates all over Europe and serves a total of nearly 3,000 stops. While FlixBus was able to extend its leadership in key markets such as Germany, France, Italy or Poland, the company also expanded its offer to new countries such as Portugal, the United Kingdom and the Baltic States. At the same time, FlixTrain remains a popular offer for travelers in Germany and Sweden. In total, FlixBus and FlixTrain transported more than 38 million passengers in Europe in 2022. In addition, FlixBus and its bus partners have been providing humanitarian aid since the attack on Ukraine, as mobility is now more important than ever. for local people. In addition to more connections and free rides for refugees, the company and its partners also transported relief supplies for those in need. Flix built the first network connecting Ukraine to other European countries and recently extended it to and from Ukraine with new lines to Germany, Poland, Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic . The company also announced that it will continue to expand long-distance bus service for Ukraine in 2023.
Present in Türkiye with the market leader
Turkish market leader Kamil Koç has been part of Flix since 2019, serving more than 300 destinations and bringing green and smart mobility to Turks. Last year, more than 13 million passengers used Kamil Koç’s services, making Turkey one of the largest and most important long-distance bus markets in the world. Flix’s goal is to strengthen market leadership in Turkey and expand long-distance bus service in regions where Kamil Koç was not represented before. Thanks to the commitment of the local teams, the offer for many regions affected by the earthquake has increased significantly in recent days and weeks. Not only was humanitarian aid provided, but many refugees were brought to safety. Kamil Koç supported the rescue efforts from the first day of the disaster with 50 buses provided free of charge: 20 buses were provided to public entities for search and rescue operations in the region, 30 buses were provided to entities private and civil society organizations that are actively involved in search and rescue operations in the region.
Flix expands to North America
Under the Flix North America umbrella, Greyhound and FlixBus have already succeeded in utilizing initial synergies, expanding the network and further improving the travel experience for customers. Since January 18, 2023, the two companies have also been technologically united. Flix managed to update Greyhound with modern Flix technology in just 14 months. Travelers can book trips with Greyhound and FlixBus on both brands’ websites and apps and benefit from an extensive network with nearly 2,300 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Last year, more than 8 million passengers used FlixBus and Greyhound in North America.
New markets in South America
Additionally, Flix started operations in Brazil in December 2021 and already connects more than 30 destinations in South America’s largest country. Flix will continue to expand the network in 2023, as green buses are very well received by passengers there. In order to continue its growth, Flix will invest in both train and bus services. All networks in Europe, North America and Turkey will experience growth in 2023 compared to 2022. At the same time, Flix will continue to focus on profitability and increase margins at group level in 2023.
The next step in FlixBus’ global expansion will also be taken in 2023: the start of operations in Chile. After Brazil, Chile will be the second largest FlixBus market in South America and the 41st country in the world with long-distance green buses on the roads. In Germany, FlixBus has pledged to integrate long-distance buses into the next 49 euro ticket. “Long-distance buses bring added social and climatic value to the ticket and make the offer as such much more attractive. We are very optimistic that it will work,” says Schwämmlein. We are still in close contact with representatives of the BMDV.
Sustainability at the heart of Flix’s strategy
At the heart of Flix’s vision, sustainable and affordable travel is a right that everyone should have access to. That is why the company not only wants to grow profitably, but also responsibly and sustainably. André Schwämmlein: “The green mobility revolution has always been in Flix’s DNA. With technologies that enable smart route planning, strong partnerships to research and implement alternative driving technologies, a path to climate neutrality and the expansion of our network, we are on a very good path. Governance Report (ESG) according to the standard of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), to better document and measure your own progress in the field of sustainability and to determine the next steps. This vision is also pursued through Flix’s recent commitment to the SBTi (Science-based Target Initiative). The latter aims to monitor and evaluate future efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Flix is also committed to the United Nations Global Compact, which provides a globally recognized policy framework for the development, implementation and disclosure of ESG guidelines.
These latest initiatives complement Flix’s previous sustainability strategy. Just by using state-of-the-art vehicles and encouraging everyone to favor collective travel over cars and other polluting modes of transport, 818,000 tonnes of CO₂ could be saved in 2022 alone. the FlixBus fleet also plays an important role. Among other things, the company introduced the first electric buses and buses equipped with solar panels on long-haul routes, launched biogas lines and partnered with major industry players to further promote the use of alternative propulsion systems on long-haul routes. Examples include the agreement with Freudenberg Sealing Technologies and ZF to introduce Europe’s first green hydrogen bus and the partnership with Daimler Buses to develop fully electric propulsion for long-distance buses. Since 2015, this option has offset more than 98,000 tonnes of CO₂. This corresponds to more than 3.7 billion kilometers traveled with the FlixBus.
