Flight Centre expands bike business

Flight Centre has decided to form a bicycle joint venture with 99 Bikes

Entrepreneurs love starting new businesses. So no surprise that Graham Turner, founder of Flight Centre, is joint owner of a small Brisbane-based bike retailer, 99 Bikes. It’s a family affair with son Matthew Turner a director of the bike retailer.

Now Flight Centre has decided to form a bicycle joint venture with 99 Bikes. Flight Centre will transfer its wholesale cycle business Advance Traders Australia into the joint venture.

Flight Centre, which has experienced high growth during the last two years, has told the market that Turner is planning to diversify into new businesses, due to the high cost of oil and concerns about the travel market.

The joint venture will include three large 99 Bikes stores located in Brisbane. It is not that common for entrepreneurs to merge their small businesses with their large public companies.

However Flight Centre says contributions from both companies have been independently valued by Deloitte.