‘Kids free’ SkyBus comes out swinging as Gold Coast Airport competition heats up

A MELBOURNE-based airport transfer service has launched on the Gold Coast with a kid-friendly offer.

Adam Begg, co-chief executive of Melbourne-based service SkyBus at Gold Coast Airport.

A MELBOURNE-based airport transfer service is planning to rapidly grow its market share of Gold Coast passenger numbers via a child-friendly offer.

SkyBus, which has bought the Gold Coast Tourist Shuttle, is offering $21 tickets to Surfers Paradise where one adult can travel with up to four children.

However, Stuart Stratton, boss of local airport transport service Con-X-ion said he wasn’t fazed by the new competition due to his company’s door-to-door service offering.

SkyBus co-chief executive Adam Begg, whose company transports four million passengers in Melbourne and one million in Auckland each year, said he is aiming to quickly build on trip numbers from the shuttle’s 150,000 a year.

“Our hope is to grow market share rapidly. Our market share in Melbourne is 11 per cent, in Auckland 5 per cent, so we’d like to see the Gold Coast somewhere in that range,” he said.

SkyBus operates 28-seat 10m low-floor buses with free Wi-Fi and is rolling out a fleet of 13 on the Gold Coast.

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Mr Begg said the Coast was a “highly competitive” market but one where SkyBus could make inroads.

The service has a prime spot outside of the entrance to the baggage carousel at Gold Coast Airport’s domestic terminal.

“We’re an airport transfer specialist, that’s all we do. It is a niche business and we think we do it better than anyone else,” Mr Begg said.

“It is a much smaller market (than Auckland or Melbourne), we are eager to grow our market share by delivering reliability and brand equity. People trust in our brand.”

Mr Begg said because SkyBus operated in Melbourne and Auckland, the company could offer end-to-end services for people travelling between those markets.

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However, Mr Stratton said he “struggled” to see how SkyBus would compete in the Coast market.

“One of the things I struggle to understand is how they will compete with the 777 public bus service that connects to the tram in Broadbeach,” he said.

“That is a low-cost model. In Melbourne they do not compete with public transport services.

“There is no train to the airport.”

Mr Stratton said Con-X-ion’s personalised service was a key point of difference from the competition.

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Con-X-ion recently expanded its service to Melbourne through a joint venture with Bluebird Airport Shuttle.