The
Company
Franchise
Services of North America Inc. (TSXV: FSN) is the largest
car rental franchisor in North America. The Company operates in the
car, van and light truck rental space, alongside a broad range of
insurance products, both business and personal, to its franchisees
and to the automobile industry.
As an umbrella company, it owns and operates
the following brands: U-Save Car
& Truck Rental, Rent-A-Wreck
of Canada, U-Save Car Sales, Auto Rental Resource Center
(ARRC), Xpress Rent-A-Car and Peakstone Financial Services.
Revenues from the brands in FY 2007 totaled US $18.2 million.
The Company is
well buffered from turmoil in the US and Global economies since FSNA
incurs very little risk and uses a small working capital line of
credit when needed. Car rentals can be expected to increase during
difficult times.
Unique to FSNA's
model is having Peakstone as a wholly-owned subsidiary to offer all
franchisees a one-stop shopping point for all insurance needs.
Subsidiaries and franchisees have solid business models to follow
allowing FSNA’s board and management to work aggressively to find
new opportunities for their franchisees, such as in-airport rental
locations, and advantageous listings with online travel websites
such as Kayak.com and Expedia.com.
An opportunity
for expansion has arisen due to a conversion wave of car rental
franchises into corporately owned companies, such as with Hertz and
Dollar-Thrifty. This opportunity leaves a pool of entrepreneurs
interested in purchasing a franchise. Since being listed on the
TSXV, FSN has opened approximately 20 new franchises, 14
Rent-A-Wreck and six U-Save stores, during FY 2008 alone. Each new
franchisee has met strict operational and capital criteria to join
the FSNA team.
The Company plans
to expand the U-Save brand further into Canada and the US, along
with other heavily travelled areas of the world, while continuing to
provide franchisees with quality corporate support in Marketing and
Insurance. It also plans to continue the aggressive expansion of the
Rent-A-Wreck brand within Canada.
To see the
Company’s Corporate Profile, please click here.
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