Sixt+ – The new car subscription

Profile:

• Company name: Sixt SE
• Industry: Mobility, car subscription, car flat rate
  
• Formation: 1912
• Founder: Martin Sixt
• Location: Pullach im Isartal, near Munich
• Subscription-based model since: Sixt+ since 2020, before that there was already the car flat rate Sixt Unlimited
• Number of employees: 6,685
• Turnover: 2.93 billion euros (2018)
• Investors: Shareholders

Sixt+ (Sixt Plus) is the latest coup by the listed, family-run group based in Pullach im Isartal. In addition to car rental, car sharing, driving services and leasing, the company is now focusing further on the car subscription model with the Sixt Plus offering launched in 2020, following the rental car flat rate (Sixt Unlimited). With over 500 stations in Germany and a presence in 105 countries, the company is now taking another step towards the future with its latest subscription model offering.

Sixt+ on the big stage

With a large-scale TV campaign, the car rental company is promoting its Sixt+ offer, which was launched just a few weeks earlier, in the summer of 2020. Under the motto “Say no to everything that bothers you about car ownership”, the car rental company wants to make viewers aware of the advantages of the car subscription. For a fixed monthly price, you drive a modern vehicle from the category of your choice without making a long-term commitment.

The price depends on the selected vehicle category. The offer starts at 349 euros per month for e.g. a VW Polo and goes up to 1,349 euros per month for e.g. the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. A start fee of 199 euros is due at the start of the car subscription.

The advantages of a car subscription with Sixt+

With Sixt+, the car rental company wants to offer an alternative to buying a car. Especially in economically difficult times, such as during the Corona pandemic, many people do not want to give up their own car, but at the same time do not want to take on a long-term financial burden. With the flexible and monthly cancellable car subscription Sixt+ wants to solve this problem. The fixed price therefore also covers all monthly costs. Taxes, insurance and maintenance are included – but you have to pay for petrol yourself. Also, only 500 km are included, each additional kilometer costs 20 cents extra.

However, unused kilometers are credited to the next month. Trips abroad are possible with an extra charge, and tire and windscreen protection, an additional driver or the mobility service also incur additional costs. The vehicles do not come from the rental car pool, but were specially ordered for Sixt+; according to the company, they are no more than 12 months old.  

Car flat rate from the top dog

The offer was launched in 30 cities in the summer of 2020, digitally and via the app, and according to the company, Sixt+ should already convince several thousand customers by the end of the year. The German market leader, which, like many companies, felt the pain of the Corona pandemic, is launching a wide-reaching TV campaign to mark the start of Sixt+ and is certainly placing correspondingly high expectations on the car subscription business. Almost simultaneously, the competitor Europcar followed suit in July 2020 with the Europcar Mobility Flat, which is aimed particularly at business travelers.