Luggage Services Partner With Clubs, Resorts, Airlines To Handle Gear Hassles

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Luggage Services Partner With Clubs, Resorts, Airlines To Handle Gear Hassles

By
January 23, 2006

The field of luxury sports-gear luggage service is getting crowded.

In 1999 Sports Express of Durango, Colo. became the first company to specialize in transporting skis, boots and other sports equipment for travelers from their homes to a destination.

Now there are a bunch of companies competing to pick up your customers' gear at their residences, then fly it and deliver it to their door in a resort, destination club or home, for a hefty fee.

The latest: Luggage Forward, a Boston-based firm that guarantees your gear will be there or it will rent you comparable equipment.

Personalized baggage caddies are hardly cheap. They typically charge over $100 each way to pick up a double ski bag and boot bag in a coastal city three days in advance and deliver them to a Rockies resort, much more for overnight service.

"It's like a concierge for your bags," a spokeswoman said. The business model is "dynamic," with cost varying depending on distance and how many days ahead of time gear is picked up. The company was seeking partners among airlines, hotels and travel agents.

"It's come down to service," said Josh Veryser, sales manager of Sports Express. He said his company now has a co-branded Web site with such companies as Northwest Airlines, and bids for the right to partner with individual resorts and clubs. Its partners now include Travelocity, Aspen/Snowmass, Fairmont and Abercrombie and Kent.

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