How Bikes Abroad Began

It all started when a friend who was a passionate motorcycle rider wanted to ship his bike. It began with four of us sitting around on a Saturday morning, throwing a couple of snags on a barbie and crating up a bike – just having while a laugh doing it.

It was never intended to be what it is now, but we realised once we were in it how important the niche was, and it’s just grown and grown. By COVID, it had been double digit growth every year (but that obviously put a temporary halt to things).

In the 15 years since, the four have remained friends and still work together, though Brent has now bought the other three out – which is quite amusing considering that he didn’t even know the industry even existed until he was in it.

While the first vehicle we shipped internationally was for a friend, it wasn’t long before the big names came called – Carl Cox was one of the first five with a motorcycle from either France or England to Australia (the internationally renowned British DJ lives in Frankston, just outside of Melbourne).

Straight Out of High School

A lifelong freight forwarder, Brent Thomas started in the shipping industry straight out of high school in 1998. Combining his expertise with his co-founder Ivan (also a seasoned customs broker) allowed them to offer a comprehensive service, differentiating themselves from competitors who often come from engineering or mechanical backgrounds.

“We worked for a freight forwarder in Tullamarine, and we’re still around this area to this day. My brother worked at the same company, and it was on my brother’s reputation that I got the gig. If I’m honest, I didn’t interview well, but the interviewer, knowing my brother, gave me the opportunity anyway, and that was right. I guess I must have done something right since I ended up as Operations Manager.

“They were the one of one of the largest Australian-owned multinationals with offices everywhere – in fact, they sent me to the U.S. to set up their U.S. operations. That gave me exposure and the opportunity to go and open these different markets and things like that – it was wonderful.”

Our Professional Difference

Many of Bikes Abroad’s competitors are engineers, mechanics and compliance people who began bringing in vehicles when they realised that they’ve got extra spots in containers that they can sell, and they grow businesses from that.

Bikes Abroad come from the other angle – we are freight forwarders that have focused in on the niche itself. With initial business partner Ivan being a customs broker since the early ‘90s, it was the perfect mix – having worked together at a company where Ivan was Customs Manager and Brent was Operations Manager, bringing those two elements together basically covered whole gamut of services.

The Personal Touch

A lot of companies tend to avoid vehicles and any personal or private transaction, they stick with commercial transactions only. The typical commercial freight forwarder doesn’t like to get involved in personal transactions because they’re quite finicky, and the typical customer can be a little bit more difficult to deal with because they don’t understand what what happens and how it works. This means that a lot of general freight forwarders out there won’t touch private shipments, regardless of whether it’s vehicles or personal effects – but we do.

Bikes Abroad’s initial vision was modest, but the founders quickly realised the importance and potential of the niche, leading to substantial growth and expansion of services. We began consolidation services from Los Angeles and London around 2016, allowing us to offer more competitive pricing and handle higher volumes.

Today, we serve more destinations than ever – so if you’re wondering can we help you get your vehicle from A to B, just get in touch and we’ll quote you for it.