Jucy spending $40m to boost fleet

Jucy has announced it is investing $40 million in new cars and campervans for its New Zealand and Australia fleets in order to ease a shortage of rental vehicles.

The investment will provide about 1,000 new vehicles and help the business open new locations on both sides of the ditch. Jucy currently has about 1,500 vehicles in New Zealand and 1,000 in Australia.

Dan Alpe, chief executive, says the first of the new campervans earmarked for New Zealand will be on the roads within the next three-four months, in time for the summer season but still short of what will be needed to meet demand. 

“What we can see from our forward bookings is that the New Zealand tourism market is responding much faster than expected and we are now looking at accelerating our growth strategy to meet the growing demand in the self-drive visitor segment,” explains Alpe, pictured.

“This rebound in tourism numbers is being driven by thousands of visitors from the European market and we expect to be completely sold out across summer, which means the New Zealand market will likely face a supply shortfall in excess of what we have seen previously.”

The funding has been sourced through Jucy’s local bank partner and Australian private equity firm Next Capital, which will take a majority position in Jucy. Polar Capital will retain a minority stake in the business.

A large chunk of New Zealand’s rental fleet was depleted as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, with thousands of vehicles sold by operators to cover overhead expenses.

With borders now reopened and international tourists returning, global vehicle shortages and shipping delays have impacted the industry’s ability to rapidly rebuild vehicle stocks, reports the NZ Herald.

Alpe says the new vehicle market remains tight resulting in longer than normal lead times.

“With the support of Next, Jucy will be able to expand more rapidly within the Australasian market as it enters a period of high demand,” he adds.