Rounding Member Transportation... Buxi's 'Golf Mobility'

Lee Jae-jin CEO "Growing into Golf Mobility Covering All Golf Courses"

Lee Jae-jin, Co-CEO of Buksy

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] The car-sharing service company 'Buxi' is expanding its business mainly around domestic golf courses. With a differentiated service that picks up golf round members from their starting point and takes them back and forth, it is aiming for a new leap forward after being acquired by Gukbo recently.

Jaejin Lee, co-CEO of Buxi, said in an interview with Asia Economy on the 30th, "Our goal is to grow into a golf mobility service that covers all golf courses in Korea," adding, "Being acquired by Gukbo has strengthened our finances, enabling us to provide a unique service." He added, "Currently, the service vehicles are limited to premium class, but we plan to expand to regular vehicles in the future," and "We are also considering introducing regular buses or limousine buses so that customers can move to golf courses in groups."

◆Reboot after acquisition by Gukbo = Buxi, which opened in April 2016, has been providing a service that transports customers from their accommodations to the airport with 11-15 passenger rental cars. However, as travelers decreased due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the company turned its attention to golf courses. It aimed to capitalize on the golf course boom amid prolonged social distancing. In October last year, Gukbo secured 34.18% of Buxi's shares, strengthening its finances. Gukbo and Buxi are developing a system that tracks real-time traffic information and vehicle locations to optimize dispatch and routing.

Currently, Buxi is achieving results with its 'Buxi Golf' service, which transports golf round members to golf courses. It owns about 500 vehicles including Carnival limousines, Solati limousines, and Mercedes Sprinter limousines, and provides services at golf courses in Gyeonggi, Gangwon, and Chuncheon regions. Buxi plans to expand its service area nationwide. According to the Korea Golf Association's 2017 Korean Golf Index, the domestic golf population is approaching 7.61 million, reflecting the anticipated demand. The golf population has been growing even faster recently due to the COVID-19 situation.

◆Premium service for round members = Another competitive advantage of Buxi Golf is that customers receive service from professionally trained drivers rather than regular drivers. Since the drivers receive and load golf bags into the vehicle, customers can save time and focus on their rounds. The drivers load the golf bags, take photos, and then confirm with the customers. There are one or two pickup points, and customers only need to get out of the vehicle while the driver handles the bags. CEO Lee said, "It has been less than a week since the launch, but reservation inquiries are already coming in."

Buxi is also strengthening its domestic travel services. Buxi has prepared a service that allows users to travel to domestic destinations without driving themselves by riding vehicles such as Carnival and Solati from their doorstep. CEO Lee said, "To revitalize domestic tourism, we have expanded mobility services beyond airports to local areas," adding, "We have all the infrastructure ready for domestic travel services, so if we partner with domestic travel agencies, we can create great synergy."