Sixt Appoints Michael Meissner USA President, COO

Mobility provider Sixt has named experienced operations expert Michael Meissner as president and chief operating officer (COO) for Sixt in the U.S., effective immediately. 

Daniel Florence is no longer with the company. 

At the end of 2020, the company filled the position of president and CFO for Sixt USA with travel manager and former Hertz CFO, Thomas Kennedy. 

In his 13-year career at Sixt, Meissner has contributed to the company’s international expansion by successfully building up the Benelux and Italian markets. For example, Sixt Italy, the youngest market in Europe for Sixt, was able to triple its sales volume within three years, thanks in part to the development of a nationwide network of stations at railway stations and airports. 

“Sixt has had a very successful start in the USA and the U.S. market has become a key growth driver for our company," Nico Gabriel, COO on the management board of Sixt, said in a statement. "But it is also true that, as the world’s largest car rental market, the USA offers us considerable growth potential due to increasing consolidation. Our goal is to develop the USA into the largest market for Sixt. To achieve this, we will be focusing on the analogue and digital expansion of our station network. Especially in inner city locations, we will offer our customers flexible and convenient services by expanding our digital mobility services. We are very pleased that we are once again able to fill one of our core positions with a colleague from our own ranks in Michael Meissner. By recently appointing Tom Kennedy and now Michael Meissner, we are also taking our growth targets into account organisationally and are convinced that they will significantly drive our premium and digitalisation strategy in the USA.”

SIXT entered the US market in 2011 and recently expanded its position as the fourth-largest car rental company in the USA. As a result, SIXT is currently present with 100 locations for the first time in the world’s largest car rental market with a market volume of more than USD 32 billion. Only last year, SIXT further expanded its expansion strategy by acquiring 10 strategically important airport stations and launching the car subscription SIXT+ despite the corona pandemic and thus set the course for further growth.

“Sixt has written a remarkable success story in Italy and I will bring this knowledge to bear in the further development of the U.S. market," Meissner said. "In doing so, we will focus in particular on one of our core competencies, namely inspiring our customers. We see ourselves as a host for our customers and our premium claim is a common thread that runs through all our products, services, and processes."

Originally posted on Auto Rental News