“All clients focused on smaller cars in 2014. We doubled volumes, but the value of acquired cars rose by only 48%. We bought more cars, but at a lower price,” said Dan Boiangiu, general manager of Arval Service Lease Romania, the third largest operating leasing company locally, after Leaseplan and ALD Automotive.
The company bought 2,501 new cars in 2014, compared with 1,299 in 2013, with a cumulated value of EUR31 million, 48% more than in 2013.
“In 2015, we expect to buy around 2,000 units, but there could be more”.
Additionally, to the same end of cutting costs, the new contracts sealed last year are for longer periods, with an average of 46 months.
“We almost doubled the volume of inked, renewed contracts. It was by far the best year for Arval. We ended 2014 with a fleet of 6,600 cars, from 5,100 at the beginning of the year. We thus posted a 30% increase. The mix between new and existent clients was highly balanced. Most contracts came from existent clients, but also new ones,” said Boiangiu in an interview with ZF.
The company’s portfolio widened from 340 company-clients in late 2013 to 350 at present, in the context where Arval grew twice as fast as the market in 2014.
For 2015, the operating leasing company targets a 10% increase of managed fleets to almost 7,300 cars, from 6,600 at present.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)