Europcar Groupe becomes EUROPCAR MOBILITY GROUP

A new name and brand identity to reflect the transformation of the Group Europcar Groupe has been Europe’s leading car rental provider for almost 70 years and one of the major players in the mobility sector.

As a car rental company, Europcar built the fundamentals of the usage and sharing economies into its core business – mobility –  a long time ago.

Since 2014, Europcar has undertaken an in-depth transformation by growing faster at an international level (i.e. China), addressing new car rental use cases (i.e. low cost) but also diversifying its activities beyond the historical car rental business. From a car rental specialist, the Group has become a global provider of mobility solutions, offering a wide range of services: car rental, van and truck rental, chauffeur services, car sharing and peer-to-peer car-sharing.

“Our customers’ expectations and needs are rapidly evolving, and we all know now that the traditional model of owning a car doesn’t fit-for-all anymore. Furthermore, thanks to technology and digital innovation, there are now many other smart and cost-effective solutions to get from one point to another, and that’s what really matters for people.”

“In this context, there is a clear need for global mobility providers, making people’s life easier. We are convinced that we are in a very good position to play our role as a leader in this paradigm shift. We want to be the preferred ‘Mobility Service Company’ by offering attractive alternative solutions to vehicle ownership.

“Considering the identified market needs and our main strengths – among which are a comprehensive worldwide network and renowned expertise in fleet management – we believe that fulfilling this mission will allow us to sustainably create value and growth” – Caroline Parot, Europcar Mobility Group CEO.

In the last few years, the Group’s growth strategy has been specifically addressed with a number of acquisitions, including Ubeeqo, a European start-up specialised in car-sharing, and Brunel, a provider of chauffeur services. More recently, the Group also bought Scooty, a scooter-sharing start-up.

The Group also took minority investments in Snappcar, the second largest international peer-to-peer car-sharing player in Europe, and Wanderio, a multimodal search and comparison platform.

In addition to its investments in new mobility solutions, the Group continues to strengthen its original vehicle rental expertise, aiming at better answering all customers’ needs whatever the budget and the usage. In 2017, this commitment was underlined by the acquisition of Goldcar, the low-cost car rental leader in Europe, and Buchbinder, one of the major vehicle rental leaders in Germany.

The expression of a diversified company and a global mobility provider

In the context of its accelerating transformation, with a richer and more diverse brand portfolio, the name “EUROPCAR MOBILITY GROUP” has been selected as the perfect expression of the Group’s goals.

“We needed a name that brought to life the transformation of the Group for our future developments, using the strength of our historical business and of our number 1 position in vehicle rental. The name EUROPCAR MOBILITY GROUP capitalises on the Europcar brand, whilst also providing the mobility context for future acquisitions.

With EUROPCAR MOBILITY GROUP we also want to trigger a new mind-set in the company: we want our employees to feel part of a wider group; a group that is very well positioned for the future” – Caroline Parot, CEO

The change of the Group’s name was approved during the Group’s Annual Shareholders Meeting that took place on May 17^th 2018.

“The new Group name and visual identity will connect all our brands, with a very distinctive symbol designed with the 3 initials of Europcar Mobility Group. The rounded shapes, crossing lines and fresh colours suggest the ease and seamlessness of our solutions, and the connections between our brands and mobility services” – Xavier Corouge, Group Marketing, Digital & Customers Director.

By being part of “EUROPCAR MOBILITY GROUP”, each of the commercial brands in the Group will be reinforced, giving them specific territories of expression to increase their customers’ engagement.  However, it is not replacing the commercial brand Europcar, nor any other of the Group’s commercial brands.

“Every time we speak for the Group; every time we act as the Group, it is this new name that will be used. The opportunities will be  numerous, encompassing  all the strategic decisions and commitments that we take as a mobility Group present in 133 countries, as well as all the communications that we undertake with  our investors, shareholders, partners and suppliers, and employees” – Valérie Sauteret, Group Communications Director.

Europcar Mobility Group brands:                       

Europcar – European leader of car rental, van and truck rental

Goldcar – Low-cost car rental leader in Europe

InterRent – Mid-tier car rental specialist (leisure-focused)

Buchbinder – One of the major car rental leaders in Germany

Ubeeqo – European start-up specialised in car-sharing (B2B & B2C)

Bluemove – Spanish car-sharing company

GoCar – Irish car-sharing company

E-car Club – UK based electric pay-per-use car club

Scooty – scooter-sharing start-up

Brunel – a London based chauffeur-services company.

Snappcar*: second largest international peer-to-peer car-sharing player in Europe

Wanderio*: multimodal search and comparison platform

*minority investment

Plan for the launch and deployment
The deployment of the new Group name will be rolled out over the next few months.

Internal appropriation:
The new name and the new brand identity were presented in preview to the Group’s Top Managers, before submission for approval to the shareholders’ general assembly on May 17^th 2018. Internal reveal started on May 18th, through different internal channels

Internal communications will continue with both the implementation of the new name and visual identity guidelines, and the move of the Group HQ from Voisins-le-Bretonneux to a brand new building at Boulevard Berthier, Paris 17^th, further reflecting the transformation of the Group.

External communication plan:
The external communication plan will be supported with the distribution of an animation movie, “The Future is about Mobility”, via the Group’s social networks and  corporate website as well as PR initiatives in France and across its other geographies.