Born on this day in 1879 in present-day Slovakia, Sandor Herz—who would later become known as John Hertz, the driving force behind what would eventually evolve into the world’s largest car-rental company.
As a child, Hertz immigrated to America with his family and spent his formative years in Chicago. In 1915, he launched the Yellow Cab Company in Chicago to offer affordable transportation options for everyday people.
Franchises of Yellow Cab quickly began appearing across the nation.
By 1923, Hertz acquired a rental-car business from Walter Jacobs, who had established the Chicago-based operation in 1918 with a fleet consisting of Ford Model Ts. Hertz rebranded the enterprise to Hertz Drive-Ur-Self Corporation, and in 1926, General Motors (GM) took over the business. John Hertz then joined the board of directors of GM, which surpassed Ford in the 1920s to become the largest automaker globally.
The first car rental shop of the Hertz company was opened at Chicago’s Midway Airport in 1932. In 1950, Hertz launched its inaugural European branch in France. Just five years later, Hertz made history by being the first rent-a-car service to operate 1,000 locations worldwide. John Hertz, who also engaged in philanthropy and raised thoroughbred horses, passed away at the age of 82 on October 8, 1961.
In 2002, Hertz was the pioneer among international car rental firms to commence operations in China.
Significant milestones in the company’s journey encompass the introduction of the Green Collection in 2006, featuring fuel-efficient, eco-friendly vehicles. The subsequent year, Hertz incorporated the Toyota Prius, heralded as the world’s first mass-produced gas-electric hybrid vehicle, into its fleet.
That same year of 2007 saw Hertz begin offering hourly car rentals in New York City and Boston. By 2008, Hertz operated approximately 8,100 locations in 147 countries around the globe. The company’s reservation centers manage an estimated 40 million calls and 30 million bookings annually.
