On 1 June the National-Alamo car rental brands will be locally represented by Europcar. Europcar Malta is a franchise operated by Alpine Rent-a-Car, a subsidiary company of the Alpine Group.
The process that led to the acquisition of these brands started in 2006 when Europcar International bought the Alamo and National car rental brands outside North America for €670 million and signing a 10-year partnership deal with the North American National-Alamo owners (Vanguard). The purchase of Alamo, known as a consumer/retail brand and National, a brand that rents to the business market, gave Europcar access to the lucrative North American market. The new combined company is today a mega company; in Britain alone, which is Europe’s second-largest car rental market, Europcar fields a fleet of over 49,000 vehicles.
As Europe’s largest car rental company, Europcar has always had strong market positions in countries such as France, Spain and Germany.
Strategically, the partnership between Europcar and National-Alamo has given Europcar direct access to the North American market. The two organisations have also agreed to share customers, particularly in the business market, where corporate clients can sign global agreements with Europcar while retail consumers will be able to transfer their loyalty bonuses.
Alpine’s partnership with Europcar goes back to the early 1970s when Alpine first set up its rent-a-car operations in Malta and, apart from a brief interruption, this partnership has been ongoing and has gathered in strength over the years
Alpine currently operates a fleet of 500 vehicles. Car rentals and leasing is operated under the Europcar brand while chauffeur-driven services are provided by the brand First. The consolidation of National-Alamo in the existing Europcar framework means a better and more extensive service to its customers by providing a competitive global service.
The Alpine Group of Companies also holds interests in incoming and outgoing travel, hotels, and financial services among others activities.