recognisable business

opportunity. Although, still

small and restricted to
business hubs and tourist
centres, car rentals have,
nevertheless, crossed the
critical mass.
Notwithstanding the
continuing buffeting of the
present global economic
slowdown, the worldwide

Market
The car rental business has existed in India for
several decades. In its early days it was primarily
entrepreneurial in nature with most owners
operating small fleets of vehicles in a geography
where the service was located. The
need for a network that operated
nationally, offered standardised
service and a professional
work culture created the
opportunity for big
corporate houses to
invest in it.
The economic
liberalisation had a
cascading effect. It brought
in its wake several
multinational companies,
new business opportunities
and a fillip to the car rental
industry to create an infrastructure
for customers seeking transport services
that they had been used to in other parts of
the world.
Further, billions of dollars were poured into
developing highways and other business and
tourism related facilities. One such beneficiary of
these huge investments was the car rental
business. Today, this has emerged as a
24

SUPERBRANDS

car rental market

is anticipated to
grow at a
compounded
annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.50% in the
period 2007/2010. This increment, even
though comparatively modest, is
expected to come from the
developing markets of China
and India as well as from
Australia and the Middle
East (Source: industry
estimates).
Internationally, car
rentals are a US$ 30 billion
(Rs. 144,000 crore)
industry. In India, it is still
largely unorganised. Smalltime operators dominate about
85% of the market. But growth
figures are impressive. The car
rental industry grew from Rs. 3000 crore
(US$ 625 million) in 2003 to Rs. 10,000 crore
(US$ 2.10 billion) in 2007 notching up an annual
average growth of 30%. The key driver, so far,
has been the business process outsourcing
(BPO) industry much of which is currently
localised in the hubs of Gurgaon, Hyderabad,
Bangalore, Pune and Chennai. Generating over

US$ 10 billion (Rs. 48,000 crore) in revenue the

Indian BPO industry employs more than a half
million people and spends nearly 2.50% of its
income on local transport.
However, with the road infrastructure set to
improve, the advent of the GPS system, a
greater discipline on Indian roads and the simple
need to upgrade from a public taxi to a private,
chauffer- or self-driven car will propel this
industry forward.

Achievements
Avis is one of the
world's iconic brands.
Its reputation has
been built on its
untiring efforts to
combine new
technologies,
impeccably maintained
cars, outstanding
service, ease of
booking and a
support system that is
operational aroundthe-clock. In India it
has set for itself the
task of continuing to
build an infrastructure
for car rental
operations which
would be second to
none and would meet
the highest
expectations of
business, corporate
and leisure travellers.
The company has a
varied fleet and offers
a wide range of
models, with a choice
of sizes and styles
to suit renters'
requirements. Avis has
a fleet of 1000 vehicles, all of which are, on an
average, less than fourteen months old, undergo
regular maintenance and are fully checked prior
to every rental. This versatile fleet offers valuefor-money and dynamic pricing to fit the
comfort and budgetary needs of every client.
The fleet includes compacts, intermediates,
sedans, premiums as well as luxury vehicles all
of which are delivered from a network of 48
locations in eighteen cities across India.
Internationally, the Avis worldwide network
boasts of a fleet of 450,000 cars in over 5100
locations in 164 countries.
Year after year, Avis has been showered with
lofty honours from satisfied customers,
consumer organisations, as well as industry
associations. It was honoured with the Best Car
Hire Company award by World Travel Awards,
for the third year in a row. These awards are a
matter of great pride and just the incentive for
the company to 'try harder'.
Its record in delivering value has been
unblemished. Perhaps, because of the effort it
makes and its impeccable lineage that it became
the first international car rental company in India

potential of taking their

car rental business out
of a niche segment into
a growing general
market, the promoters
decided to form a joint
venture with Avis in
order to build a

to be awarded the license to operate at the

Delhi International Airport.
Interestingly, Avis worldwide commenced
operations as an airport-located business; today
it has a presence in over 1000 airports including
seven in India.

History
In 1946 Warren Avis opened the world's first
airport car rental location at Willow Run
Airport, Detroit. On day one, the company had
on offer a grand total of three cars. Energy,
enthusiasm, innovative industry leadership and
an ethos of continuous improvement have
characterised the company through the years.
In 1960 Avis crossed another landmark when
it established its corporate offices in the UK.
Three years later, the company's advertising
agency Doyle Dane Bernbach had developed
one of the world's truly great slogans:
'We try harder'.
As the high-tech decade dawned in the West,
the company was among the first
to take advantage of
innovations by
introducing the
'Wizard', in the early
1970s. This was the
first real-time,
information
management and
reservation system
of making
worldwide
bookings using
network
communications. Each
'transaction' was typically completed
in an average of two seconds. In 1973 Avis
was nominated as the market leader in Europe,
Africa and the Middle East.
The dawn of the millennium was historically
significant in the company's continuous
evolution as a world leader in the car rental
business. Within the first year of the new
decade it was ranked highest for customer
loyalty among 129 companies evaluated for the
Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Awards. In
2003, the company introduced Avis Assist, the
first hand-held GPS system. In the next two
successive years the brand launched Avis Access
the first car rental offering for travellers with
disabilities; it was ranked the number one car
rental company in customer loyalty and ranked
number two in overall customer loyalty, just
behind Google.
Avis' history in India commenced with
its launch in 1999. Initially, the company
was designed to provide car rental services
to the guests of the Oberoi and Trident
chain of hotels. However, awakening to the

company with
world-class
standards in
car rentals.

Product
Avis India provides the complete range of
ground transportation services required by
hotels, corporates and retail users. Chauffeured
cars driven by well-trained, disciplined and
reliable drivers take clients around town, ferry
them for airport transfers and facilitate
outstation trips. Dynamic prices offer choices
between fares such as hourly rates and half- and
full-day packaged rates.
Well-maintained, self-driven cars are available
from Avis on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
The company has on offer four-wheel drives,
SUV's and automatic transmission cars in
selected cities. The company also manages
ground transportation for events and
conferences, including pre- and post-tour
functions.
Long-term rentals and mini
leases are custom-designed for
corporate and individual
clients needing specific
cars for long durations.
The options come
with several
packages which
include the services
of a chauffeur,
vehicle- and fuelmaintenance,
insurance even
resale. The
company also undertakes leasing
and fleet management for corporate
organisations that prefer to outsource their
fleet requirement.
In an effort to develop worldwide
relationships Avis in India now also offers its
clients the benefit of the company's worldwide
network. Customers travelling to any one of
164 countries and 5100 rental locations Avis
operates out of can rent a car-of-choice and
expect the same friendly, service-with-a-smile
welcome.

Recent Developments
As markets have grown and new opportunities
have manifested
themselves Avis has
grown with them.
The company has
expanded its India
operations by
opening two new
Avis locations in

Goa and Amritsar. These are in addition to the

seven airport operations it has in Mumbai,
Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, Udaipur and
Bhubaneshwar.

Promotion
Avis has cultivated several partnerships and
strategic alliances to provide value addition to
customers. With
joint programmes
and promotions as
the basis, the
company works
with many
partners to
provide a totally
integrated travel
experience. Avis
currently has tie
ups with airlines
such as Jet
Airways and
Kingfisher, with
hotels such as Radisson and Ista, travel service
providers such as American Express and with
selected tour operators, hotel groups, car
manufacturers and the railways.
Promotions are a regular feature on the
company's worldwide as well as India websites.
The messaging is clear and unequivocal: Avis is
committed to making travel faster, easier and
more enjoyable. In order to make these goals
a reality the organisation has developed
membership programmes and personal services
that are designed to meet a wide variety of
needs, tastes and customer preferences. These
value additions are available free of charge.

Brand Values
'We try harder' is one of the ten most
influential advertising campaigns of all time.
Launched in 1963 to make a virtue of Avis's #2
position, the slogan helped in achieving
worldwide expansion. Later it became a rallying
point for all Avis employees. It
established Avis's commitment
towards customer service and
the need for continuous
improvement. With this
promise, every employee
recognised that Avis will
not ever take the
customer for granted
and that its goal is to
build unimpeachable
loyalty.
'We try harder' has
actually transcended into a
culture Avis lives by.

www.avis.co.in
Things you didnt know about

Avis
With the acquisition of Budget, three years ago,
the group is by far the number one car rental
organisation in the world
Avis became the first international car rental
company in India to be awarded the license to
operate at various airports
Avis and British Airways have entered into a
five-year global partnership deal in which all
British Airways customers worldwide can avail
of the Avis car rental service
The loyalty programme run by Avis is called
Avis First. It offers rewards such as weekend
rentals, a members-only website and a
dedicated, toll-free reservation number
India's largest fleet of premium cars is offered
by Avis

SUPERBRANDS

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