Bidvest Car Rental has officially launched its new branding, rolling out the new signage at its various car-rental locations across Southern Africa. Avis Southern Africa will take up the Budget brand, effective March 1.

Bidvest decided not to renew the licence to operate the Budget brand at the end of last year, when its agreement with the Avis Budget Group (ABG) came to an end after 10 years. Since then, Barloworld, which operates the Avis brand in southern Africa, has been granted the Budget Car Rental licence for Southern Africa, effective March 1. This is in line with ABG’s dual-brand global strategy.

Besides the rebranding, the existing infrastructure, management and team remain unaffected. “It’s been a smooth transition,” says Bidvest Car Rental CEO, Paulette McGhee. “Our staff, including the senior management team which have been with the Budget brand for, on average, 17 years – have fully supported the move, and the feedback from customers has been positive.

“At the moment, it’s about getting the basics right: understanding our customers’ needs, their journey and experience. Our new brand position is ‘Because every minute counts’, which tells the customer our service is about being prompt and saving them time. People don’t buy from brands, they buy from people, so it all boils down to service,” she says.

Bidvest plans to roll out the launch of its brand across various media, educating customers about the brand’s position. “Our company, our people, our company culture will not change – we will continue to position our brand different to the traditional car-rental company,” Paulette says. 

Bidvest is not only a well-known, strong brand in the South African market but also globally, which puts the car-rental company in good stead. “There has been massive consolidation in the car-rental industry globally and we’re likely to see the same in the southern African market. We operate in a high risk, low margin environment. Small players who don’t have the support of a big shareholder will find this environment particularly difficult.”