Mr. Fuchs, you used to work in management at Flughafen Zürich AG. Your business partner still works there. Is Flying Bag a child of the aviation crisis?
Lukas Fuchs: No, Flying Bag is not a child of the aviation crisis. I gave my notice in November 2019. At that time, hardly anyone in Switzerland knew what was coming and what impact Corona would have on aviation. I just wanted to clear my head and broaden my horizons. So I was open to new ideas and challenges.

And when did you have the idea for Flying Bag?
My business partner Lydia Naef approached me with the idea of Flying Bag. Working at the airport, we both experienced how complicated and tedious it is to handle baggage. The idea of making traveling easier for people never left us. That's how Flying Bag was born in spring 2021.

So was flight luggage at the origin of the idea for Flying Bag?
Yes, but due to Corona we have initially focused on the domestic door-to-door business. In future, however, we will also offer the transportation of luggage from home to the airport, including check-in. The aim is to enable all travelers to travel in a relaxed and stress-free manner.

What distinguishes Flying Bag's Swiss service from the SBB baggage transportation service? Because we specialize exclusively in transporting luggage, we are able to tailor our services to our customers. We can react quickly and individually to customer needs. Our USP is "Next Day Delivery". Luggage is collected on the evening before departure and delivered to the vacation home or hotel by the evening of the following day at the latest. A personal cockpit and SMS updates keep our customers constantly informed about the status of the delivery. Flying Bag not only transports suitcases, but also sports equipment, baby carriages and, last but not least, bicycles and e-bikes. And this from door to door.

Why do we need the night in between?
DE-CH;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA">The customer request for flexible pick-up and delivery times requires complex logistics. We need this time for optimal coordination and utilization of our vehicles. We will also be able to offer same-day transportation for flight baggage.

How close in advance can you book?
Bookings must be made online three days in advance. We will send you the "Flying Bag Tag", the baggage tag with QR code, by post. You attach it to your luggage and hand it over to the driver at the front door. The bag tag enables us to track the luggage during the journey and guarantee timely and safe delivery.

Which customers do you have in mind?
Our service is for all customers who want to travel stress-free. Families, groups, athletes, solo travelers or senior citizens. With Flying Bag, customers can decide for themselves how they want to travel and what they want to take with them. It is even possible to cycle to your vacation destination and have your luggage delivered directly to your destination.

How much does it cost to ship luggage and bikes? For example, if a customer sends two bikes and a suitcase from Zurich to Pontresina and back again, it will cost them 178 francs.

That's not exactly cheap. After three trips to the Engadin, you've paid the price of a bike rack.
Of course such a service costs money. But I believe that a pleasant journey and spontaneous and uncomplicated travel bring great added value. Incidentally, we are the only provider that transports bicycles from door to door and also takes them unpacked. It is a matter of course for us that the bicycles or other luggage arrive at their destination without damage.

Why should someone who takes the train for ecological reasons have their luggage transported on the road?
Because many people will probably only use the train again when it becomes more convenient to travel by train. Due to heavy luggage, limited transportation options, tight spaces, combined with short transfer times, this is often not possible today. This is also why it is so important for us to make full use of our transport vehicles. The transports are cleverly combined with other trips in order to achieve the best possible capacity utilization. On request, the journeys can be climate-compensated in cooperation with myclimate. Soon it will also be possible to choose "smart route planning" - flexible pick-up and delivery times - to help reduce CO2 emissions.

How has your business started?
We started in June 2021 with the first test customers to test our product on the market and continuously optimize it. We successfully completed the test phase and have been delivering luggage door-to-door throughout Switzerland ever since.

How often were bicycles involved?
Bicycles currently make up the majority of transports.

And if 500 transports are booked in one day for the fall vacations, can you cope with this volume?
In any case, together with our logistics partner, we can transport such a quantity and ride it to its destination on time. More is always possible, empty runs would be more of a problem. They simply don't pay off.