Europcar Mobility Group has acquired its Europcar Finland and Europcar Norway franchisees, expanding its corporate network to 20 countries.

The transaction marks the group’s fourth and fifth franchisee acquisitions and expands it European footprint further

The transaction marks the fourth and fifth national franchises acquired by the Group, including the acquisition of its Danish franchisee in 2017, and gives Europcar solid bases in both national markets with a combined revenue of approximately €56m in 2018.

The companies are acquired from Matti and Jussi Holopainen, who will remain with the business.

In Finland, Europcar is said to be the market leader with a 31% market share. The business has a network of 56 branches throughout the country, located in cities and at all the major airports, and operates an average fleet of 3,000 vehicles cars and vans.

In Norway, the business is said to be number three in the market has been recovering since its purchase by the Holopainens in 2014. Through a mixture of investment in new systems, station upgrades and a program of acquiring domestic sub-franchisees in Norway, the business has returned to profitability and expects strong top and bottom line growth.

The acquisitions are expected to bring potential synergies, particularly in fleet purchasing and fleet financing, as well as more medium-term savings opportunities in back-office functions across the Nordic region.

The businesses will also be able to draw upon Europcar Mobility Group’s assets and expertise in e-commerce and to support their development plans through the mobility services offered by the group.

Olivier Baldassari, chief countries and operations officer of Europcar Mobility Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome Europcar Finland and Europcar Norway with Jussi and Matti Holopainen into the Group. These two new corporate countries are profiled to support the growth of Europcar Mobility Group in Northern Europe. These acquisitions will fit nicely into our Leverage and Scale Up strategic framework, expanding our services into new countries, while leveraging on our core assets and achieving synergies.”

Jussi and Matti Holopainen commented: “We are happy to become part of the Europcar Mobility Group and believe this will offer us a strong competitive advantage to continue our growth in Finland and Norway. Both of us are entrepreneurs and we want to bring this entrepreneurial spirit to the development plans and to Europcar Mobility Group. With this new opportunity, we see possibilities to also share our best practices and get the most of the group’s expertise.”