Hertz
In September of 1918, the pioneer of auto renting, Walter L. Jacobs, at the age of 22, opened a car rental operation in Chicago. Starting with a dozen Model T Fords, which he repaired and repainted himself, Jacobs expanded his operation to the point where, within five years, the business generated annual revenues of about $1 million.
In 1923, Jacobs sold his car-rental concern to John Hertz, President of Yellow Cab and Yellow Truck and Coach Manufacturing Company. Jacobs continued as Hertz' top operating and administrative executive.
In 1932, Hertz Car Rental opened the first rent-a-car facility at Chicago's Midway Airport. Later that same year, to further facilitate the world's adjustment to travel by air, Hertz Car Rental introduced the first Fly/Drive car rental program.
This rental business, called Hertz Drive-Ur-Self System, was acquired in 1926 by General Motors Corporation when it bought Yellow Truck from John Hertz.
Car rental, the largest and best known of Hertz' activities, is conducted from approximately 1,900 locations in the United States and from approximately 5,100 international locations. Hertz Car Rental offers a wide variety of current-model cars on a short-term rental basis - daily, weekly or monthly - at airports, in downtown and suburban business centers, and in residential areas and resort locales.
Today, Hertz' Worldwide Reservations Centers handle approximately 40 million phone calls and delivers approximately 30 million reservations annually.
Hertz Car Rental, the world's leading vehicle renting organization, is represented in the United States and more than 150 foreign countries, operating from 7,000 locations
