Anuário Brasileiro do Setor de Locação de Veículos | 2018

10 Anuário Brasileiro do Setor de Locação de Veículos Brazilian Vehicle Rental Sector Yearbook 2018 Sharing is in our DNA A WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT A mong the huge number of responsi- bilities included in decision-making for our industry entrepreneurs focused on the survival and growth of the vehicle rent- al market, we are also taking a moment to revisit our business models. Rental companies have customized the use of technologies, adopted smart criteria for fleet logistics and applied their experience in sharing vehicles to prospect more and new customer niches .All this is without losing sight of the cost / benefit balance for the services provided. In parallel, small and medium-sized companies have seen in regionalization a way to maintain their income, working in a more captive geographic space of clients. And we have also seen the absorption of rental companies by large players, within a model that is the reality in several other segments, thanks to the dynamism of the local and global economies. This current business environment re- quires a lot of business acumen and care. Bearing in mind that we have to make a huge effort to serve an ever more demanding market, the old-fashioned business model is being consigned to the pages of history. ABLA members know that the signs of change have become stronger and that they are being reflected in all cate- gories and formats of rental con- tracts. Customers are alert to a range of new options that have appeared in this new era of sharing. In urban centers, medium and even small towns, there has been a general alert regarding mobility solutions. There are barriers to be broken down, among them a low level of public investment in transport, as well as the still restricted view of the real importance of vehicle rental to effective mobility projects. Those paradigms are bound to change. And it will happen sooner or later out of the growing gap between demands based on old habits, given the new needs for smart and shared transport. Even our legislation is trying to make progress in this direction.The National Pol- icy on Urban Mobility, established by Law 12,587, sets out the objectives for the de- velopment of cities to in line with urban mo- bility.This has to include, for example, stim- ulating companies, public agencies and citizens to stop spending on their own cars. No wonder automakers have begun to include rental in their businesses. This is not surprising in our industry, especially since the DNA of sharing has always been part of our business.After all, the rental companies were the first to make vehicles available, as an alternative to those interested in avoiding expenses on their own fleets. It is interesting to note that in these times when you hear so much about ‘dis- ruptive’ solutions, you must also remember the obvious, that is, that rental is the most original form of sharing. Within a short time, I believe we will stop hearing the term “car rental” and start talking only about “sharing vehicles.”This does not scare us: we are the true pioneers in this practice. Paulo Miguel Júnior President of ABLA’s National Council In these times when you hear so much about ‘disruptive’ solutions, you also have to remember the obvious: rental is the most original form of sharing. © Idimair | Dreamstime.com