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TOP 10 KEY PLAYERS IN THE RENTAL CAR INDUSTRY 1

1. Enterprise
 Enterprise Rent-A-Car was established in St. Louis,
Missouri in 1957 by Jack C. Taylor.
 Originally known as "Executive Leasing Company," in
1969, Taylor renamed the company "Enterprise" after
the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise, on which he served
during World War II.
 In 2009, Enterprise became a subsidiary of Enterprise
Holdings, Inc., following the company's 2007
acquisition of Vanguard Automotive Group, the parent
company of National Car Rental and Alamo Rent a Car.
 Enterprise Rent-A-Car is the largest rental car company in the United States, with more
than 9,000 "home city" locations, and 419 airport locations.
 It all started with seven cars and a hunch. Jack Taylor’s vision is how the Enterprise story
begins. Back in 1957, a decorated WWII Hellcat pilot returned home after serving over
the skies of the South Pacific. Jack embraced the novel concept of leasing automobiles,
with a fleet of seven cars.
2. Hertz
 The Hertz Corporation, a subsidiary of Hertz Global
Holdings, Inc., is an American car rental company
based in Estero, Florida
 Operates approximately 12,000 corporate and
franchisee locations, both domestically and
internationally.
 Hertz operates in 160 countries in North America,
Europe, Latin America, Africa, Asia, Australia, the
Caribbean, the Middle East and New Zealand.
 The Hertz Corporation, originally known as Rent-a-
Car Inc., was founded by Chicago, Illinois native Walter L. Jacobs in 1918.
 It began with a dozen Model T Ford cars. Within five years, Jacob's fleet expanded to
600 vehicles—generating annual revenues of approximately US$1 million.
 John D. Hertz, owner of Yellow Truck and Coach Manufacturing Company, developed an
interest in the brand, leading to him purchasing the company in 1923. It was then
renamed to Hertz Drive-Ur-Self System. Jacobs continued to serve as president and chief
operating officer of Hertz Drive-Ur-Self System until 1961.

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https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/best-car-rental-company-of-2021/
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3. Avis
 Avis Car Rental and its subsidiaries operate one of the
world's best-known car rental brands with
approximately 5,500 locations in more than 165
countries.
 Avis is owned by Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:
CAR), which operates and licenses the brand
throughout the world.
 Founded in 1946 by Warren Avis (who sold his
interest in 1954), Avis was the first company to rent
cars from airport locations. The company grew rapidly
during the 1950's through franchised and corporate-
owned expansion.
 Avis changed ownership multiple times in the 70's and 80's, becoming employee-owned
in 1987. That same year, Avis introduced the Roving Rapid Return, a handheld computer
terminal allowing customers to bypass the Avis counter.
 In 1996, HFS Incorporated acquired Avis, which was then spun off as a separate public
company, all but the franchising rights, Wizard system, and reservation operations.
 In March 2001, Cendant Corporation purchased all of the outstanding shares of Avis
Group Holdings and later that year moved its world headquarters to Parsippany, NJ. In
2006, Cendant Corp. separated into four independent companies: Realogy, Wyndham
Worldwide, Travelport and Avis Budget Group, Inc., which is now the parent company of
Avis Car Rental.
 In 2011, Avis Budget Group acquires Avis Europe plc. The transaction re-unites Avis
Budget Group with its licensee for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.

4. Alamo
 Founded in 1974, Alamo offers low rental rates and a
fun, hassle-free customer experience at the most
popular travel destinations throughout the United
States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Latin America,
Europe, Asia and the Pacific Rim.
 Pioneers of Online Check In- in 2005, Alamo launched
the industry's first and only online check in system.
 Alamo began operations in 1974 with 1,000 cars at
four Florida locations.
 Its name had been chosen for the position it would
command in classified telephone directories, rather than for any historical reference.
 From the beginning, the company pursued a discount strategy, charging up to 20
percent less than its much larger competitors, offering free mileage, and using less
expensive, off-airport sales locations.
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5. Thrifty car rental

 Thrifty Car Rental is one of the largest car rental
companies in the world and is a subsidiary of The
Hertz Corporation with headquarters in Estero,
Florida.
 Formerly operating as Dollar Thrifty Automotive
Group, Thrifty shares 340 corporate and 1,500
franchise rental car locations in the United States and
Canada with Dollar Rent A Car as of February 2017.
 Established in 1958 as Thrifty Rent a Car System, Inc.
 In 1987, the company completed an initial public
offering of common stock and was acquired two years
later, in 1989, along with Dollar Rent A Car, by Chrysler Corporation.
 By the end of 1989, Thrifty was purchased by Chrysler Corporation for US$263 million
with the intent to merge Thrifty with its Pentastar Transportation Group. With focus on
value-priced car rentals, Chrysler announced Thrifty Car Rental and Dollar Rent A Car
would form Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group to reduce operating expenses in 1997. This
rebrand was overseen by Chairman and CEO Joseph E. Cappy, serving from 1993 to 2003

6. National
 National Car Rental is an American rental car agency
based in Clayton, Missouri, United States. National
is owned by Enterprise Holdings, along with other
agencies including Enterprise Rent-A-Car, and
Alamo Rent a Car.
 National was founded by 24 independent rental car
agents on August 27, 1947. It had grown from 60
locations in the United States in 1947 to over 2000
locations internationally as of 2005.
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7. Dollar
 Dollar Rent A Car was founded in 1965 in Los
Angeles, where its executive offices remained until
1994
 Originally known as "Dollar a Day Rental Car,"
 The company still remains one of the best budget
values in the industry.
 In August 1990, Dollar was acquired by Chrysler,
which made it part of its Pentastar Transportation
Group, Inc., along with Thrifty Car Rental. In
August 1994, Dollar relocated its world car rental
headquarters to Tulsa, Oklahoma. In November
1997, Chrysler sold Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc. (DTG), successor by merger to
Pentastar, in a public offering on the New York Stock Exchange.
 Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, the former holding company of Dollar Car Rental and
Thrifty Car Rental, was acquired by The Hertz Corporation in 2012.
 Being a subsidiary of Hertz and a partner of Thrifty -- the two companies share over
1,500 storefronts globally

8. Budget
 Budget Rent a Car System, Inc. is an American car
rental company that was founded in 1958 in Los
Angeles, California by Morris Mirkin.
 Budget is a subsidiary of the Avis Budget Group, with
its operations headquartered in Parsippany, New
Jersey.
 Outlets worldwide: 3,000
 With its original fleet of 10 cars, the company lived
up to the 'Budget' name by undercutting the daily
and per mile rental rates of the established airport
based car rental companies. Mirkin was joined in 1959 by Julius Lederer and together,
they built the company internationally. In 1960, the headquarters moved to Chicago,
Illinois and the rental fleet expanded with franchised and wholly owned rental outlets.
 The company was eventually acquired by Transamerica Corporation, and then sold in
1986 in a leveraged buyout by Gibbons, Green and van Amerongen Ltd., along with
management (led by CEO Clifton E. Haley) and selected investors. The company made its
first public stock offering in 1987.
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9. Ace
 ACE Rent a Car is a privately held car rental company
founded in 1966 and based in Indianapolis, Indiana.
 Robert Sorensen and Ken Osterand, native
Chicagoans and lifelong friends, first ventured into
business together by opening two car washes in
Indianapolis (5800 W. Washington St. & 3433 W.
16th St.) under the name, Speedway Auto Laundry,
in 1957.
 In 1966, in order to meet the demand for car rental
from the surrounding neighborhoods, the two men
added 10 Volkswagens to their business, operating under the Airways Rent A Car brand
until early 1969.
 Outlets worldwide: 300
 Each dollar spent on a qualifying reservation earns a renter a point, and points can be
redeemed toward rental days and mileage. The company also offers promotions where
members can earn bonus points.

10. Sixt
 A mainstay in Germany, Sixt broke into the US market
in 2011 and has already made huge inroads -- last
year, Kayak ranked Sixt the fourth-best car rental
company in the US, based upon customer reviews.
 The company's business model differs slightly from
that of others in that it offers more vehicle rent
classes (such as convertibles, pickup trucks, SUVs, and
sports cars), as well as better rates on a luxury car. So
far, it seems to be working.
 Outlets worldwide: 2,100
 SIXT rent a car was founded in Munich, Germany in 1912, and started out with a fleet of
just three vehicles.
 Present in over 105 countries with branches in over 2,200 locations.
 In 1912, Martin Sixt founded the company with a fleet of three cars, creating the first car
rental company in Bavaria. During the First World War, the fleet was confiscated and
used by the German Army. After the war, business resumed, but the fleet was once
again seized by the German Army at the outbreak of World War II. When the war
concluded, the company rebounded, establishing a taxi fleet for members of the United
States Army stationed in Germany. It then opened a taxi business in Munich with the
first radio taxis.