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The Build Cycle Podcast #048: How Bikeflights.com delivers massive savings for cyclists

Written by Tyler Benedict Jun 26, 2018 3:00 p.m. ET

How did Bikeflights start their business and how do they get better rates than FedEx

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If you’ve ever had to ship your bike to an event, or pay to bring it on an airline, then you know how expensive it can be and how frustrating it is when things go sideways. Bikeflights.com founder Bill Alcorn felt our collective pain and decided to do something about it. But where do you begin when trying to negotiate huge discounts from a global company like FedEx before you even have a real product? We answer that and a whole lot more in Episode #048 of The Build Cycle Podcast. If you’ve ever wondered why excellent customer service can create a business or how to build your service business on top of a 3rd party’s infrastructure, this episode is for you. Or, you know, if you just wanna know how yet another part of the cycling industry works, tune in and hear Bill’s startup story!

For more show notes, images and details, check out the full blog post on The Build Cycle!

Tyler Benedict

11,200 articles

Tyler Benedict is the Founder of Bikerumor.com. He has been writing about the latest bikes, components, and cycling technology for almost two decades. Prior to that, Tyler launched and built multiple sports nutrition brands and consumer goods companies, mostly as an excuse to travel to killer riding locations throughout North America.

Based in North Carolina, Tyler loves family adventure travel and is always on the lookout for the next shiny new part to make his bikes faster and lighter.

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Mer

5 years ago

Well, I just went to the BikeFlights site and got their estimate for a cyclocross bike shipped from Florida to Adelaide Australia. $2848 to ship a bike. It is most definitely less expensive to pay the airline $150 for the domestic legs ($300) and actually have the bike with you upon arrival. A cross US estimate is between $132 and $600 USD. That may save a little money if you can do without your bike for 6 days while it travels separately. What am I missing? It sure seems like a better idea to pay the airlines to fly with your bike.

Other Aaron

5 years ago

Reply to Mer

They work a lot better when you are not trying to ship overseas. When I was in school, I would ship my bike(s) home each summer, for about $100. and I could have it picked up and dropped off at bike shops. It was a lot easier than having to try deal with mike boxes at the airport

5 years ago

Reply to Mer

Airlines typically only cover a small fraction of the value of your bike, so it’s a risk. With BikeFlights (FedEx) you can insure up to $15k for an additional fee. We ship lots of bikes and they typically run 3ish business days to destination for around $50-60. That’s a lot better than the $120ish we used to pay.

If you’re in a hurry to get to a race and can’t be without your bike for more than 2 or 3 days then the additional expense of another service may be for you, but for those who can fit this in their schedule it’s a screaming, smoking hot deal.

TheKaiser

5 years ago

In above comments, Mer is saying $132-$600 for domestic, and AH is saying $50-60. If the former spread is accurate, it really seems that there is no advantage to this service, but with the latter it is quite a bargain.

And having it picked up and dropped off at bike shops could be an advantage, if you normally visit that shop anyway, or use them to box your bike, or it could be a disadvantage as I have seen a number of occasions when stuff that was supposed to get shipped out of a shop ended up in the back corner of the workshop forgotten…until the irate customer called trying to track it down.

Rick

5 years ago

I’ve used them domestically in the US a few times and the savings were well worth it. Impressed by their excellent service which is something you can’t about to many companies these days.

Jim Collins

5 years ago

I used them this year to get a bike from Arizona to Iowa. It was great. Inexpensive, good customer service, (walked me thru paper work and advice) I would tell my best friends to use them.