New car hire deal for Stelios

Stelios Haji-Ioannou has reportedly switched lanes by completing the first franchising deal for his car rental business, EasyCar. The Guardian reports that Stelios has set up the deal in Cyprus, where a businessman will operate four sites with a total of 200 cars, in return for “a royalty to use the EasyCar name”, and intends to roll out the concept in other overseas destinations. He said that in some destinations he would organise franchises with existing operators, while in other cases the EasyCar website would be used to make bookings with other car hire firms. He reportedly told the newspaper: “The credibility of a company like EasyCar with headquarters in Camden to run a business in Cyprus is zero. This type of deal is the only way to expand internationally.” The Guardian reports that EasyCar currently has some 8,000 cars in 50 sites across the UK, France, Spain and Switzerland. Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad