Avis snaps up Zipcar
The Boston Business Journal reports Avis Budget will pay $500 million for the locally based car-sharing service.The move will let Zipcar users rent Budget cars on the weekends.
Some local Zipcar fans were not pleased this morning. Lalunkee tweets:
I expect that this will ruin a wonderful thing. Crap.
Nathan Spencer adds:
I saw what Avis did to Budget and I worry this will be a reversal of what Zipcar was founded upon. Also, not for nothing, this is another example of a good Boston-based company moving up and out.
Although the companies say Zipcar will keep its local headquarters - and will still move them from Cambridge to South Boston, Spencer is not convinced that means much:
Oh, right, just like Gillette. It's not Avis' fault. Boston needs to find ways to keep successful companies here.
Comments
Pretty disappointed to see
Pretty disappointed to see this crawl across the ticker this morning. I also fully expect to see mid-level Avis management with nothing to do but justify their own position come in ruin everything that's great about Zipcar through cost-containment, workforce realighment, and revenue-enhancement methods. In other words, delivering cheaper product, with less support/maintenance, at higher cost.
Just in time...
...to stop my intended membership.
They'd recently expanded to include more cars available near my workplace *and* residence. I was going to join within the next month, when I anticipate possibly needing to use a zipcar.
Oh well. Congrats to the entrepreneurs for cashing in.
How Avis will ruin Zipcar.
How Avis will ruin Zipcar.