Flix SE, the travel-tech company behind FlixBus, FlixTrain, Greyhound and Kâmil Koç, marks a decade since it first launched services outside its home market of Germany. Since 2015, the company has grown from a Munich startup into a global network carrying more than 500 million passengers. 

Where the international network began

Flix was founded in Munich in 2013 and launched services in Italy and France in June 2015. In France, the liberalization of the long-distance bus sector under the Macron Law in August 2015 opened the market, and Flix launched routes there before expanding its domestic network, serving today more than 200 destinations. Italy’s market opened more gradually from 2014; Flix entered in mid-2015, connecting domestic hubs before adding international services, with a clearer regulatory framework accelerating growth from 2017, serving today over 200 destinations directly connecting 18 European countries. More than 65 million passengers have since traveled to and from France and more than 50 million to and from Italy. 

“These two markets represented our first major steps beyond Germany and validated the scalability of our business model across borders,” said André Schwämmlein, co-founder and CEO of Flix SE. 

Asset-light, technology-led model

Flix operates an asset-light model built on partnerships with local bus operators, combining its technology platform with local networks across markets from Germany to India, the United States, and Mexico. Its services include digital booking, real-time tracking, and a growing range of intermodal options. Flix has framed the past decade around the slogan Making buses cool again, positioning intercity coach travel as an affordable, modern alternative. After its first markets, the company expanded into the Benelux region and Central and Eastern Europe, and it continued to grow its network through the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has since added markets in Latin America and Asia-Pacific. 

Flix is marking the anniversary with events in Italy in June, followed by France.