Sixt SE held its annual general meeting virtually on June 16, announcing it would increase its fleet to 2019 levels in the U.S. this summer.

“After the most difficult and challenging year in the long history of our company since the Second World War, the end of the tunnel now seems within reach, more than a year after the outbreak of the pandemic. Thanks to the progress being made with the vaccination campaigns, we are seeing a significant increase in demand, especially in the U.S.,” said Erich Sixt, former CEO.

Sixt is planning “a significant expansion” of locations in Europe and the U.S., not only physical stations but also smartphone-enabled virtual locations to replace the rental counter.

Sixt plans to expand its van and truck segment to take advantage of the increase and demand for commercial vehicles, particularly for e-commerce and last-mile deliveries.

After reactivating its existing workforce to full strength, Sixt is planning a hiring offensive to meet this new demand. The company will seek to gradually end part-time work by the end of June.

Also at the meeting, Erich Sixt officially resigned as chairman of the management board and assumed his new role as chairman of the Supervisory Board of Sixt SE. The management of Sixt is now in the hands of the fourth generation of the Sixt family. Alexander Sixt and Konstantin Sixt, who, as announced on March 1, have been appointed joint chairmen and co-CEOs of Sixt SE.

Due to continuing uncertainties, Sixt declined to issue a forecast for the remainder of 2021. However, the basic optimism is “greater than it was a few months ago,” said Sixt.