Interviews
29 sep 17

Pascal Vintonio, ALD Brazil: Gearing up for new mobility solutions

The Brazilian unit of car leasing and fleet management company ALD is gearing up for new mobility solutions in Brazil, according to CEO Pascal Vintonio.

This week, the executive sheds light on ALD's coverage in Brazil, the challenges and opportunities in private automobile leasing, and company's upcoming innovations.

Could you tell me a little about ALD in Brazil and the Brazilian market in general

Currently, ALD Brazil manages a fleet of some 24,000 units through a staff of approximately 180 people.

Our headquarters is in the city of São Paulo and we have regional offices in the state capitals of Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte (Minas Gerais), Curitiba (Paraná), Porto Alegre (Rio Grande do Sul), and Recife (Pernambuco), in addition to offices directly on client premises.

As for me, I joined ALD Brazil in early 2011 as its general manager. Although we have evolved as one of the leaders in the fleet management business, Brazil is still a developing market. The country, however, is on the verge of entering ALD's Top 10 which is comprised of the group's best and most mature markets. 

We achieve this by giving our clients the best of both worlds: Offering the security, sophistication and accountability of a global leader, while being highly integrated with local business partners and product providers such as OEMs, dealers, body shops, regulatory entities, and insurers.

What are the core services you offer?

Based on the clients interests and requirements, we can offer both off-balance sheet (long term rental) and on-balance sheet (pure fleet management) solutions. 

We provide a comprehensive suite of ancillary services packaged into one customized contract, tailored to the client´s expectations. Among the services are those associated with maintenance, collision management, insurance, replacement cars, fuel cards, documentation, and the management of fines.

Do you see private vehicle leasing in Brazil as a challenge or opportunity?

Well, with a fleet of nearly 100mn vehicles, private automobile leasing in Brazil is an opportunity without a doubt. 

Despite the car being a sign of status and much of the geographically spread out country depending on it for public transportation, there are new concepts being considered by Brazilian citizens, more so among the young who are looking for pay-for-use, shared economy, and sustainable mobility solutions.

However, marketing this idea is far from mature in comparison to countries in Europe and North America. Brazil has many challenges related to safety, insurance, credit risk, fraud, and the reliability of distribution channels

With that said, ALD Brazil is more than ready to tackle this huge challenge and turn it into an opportunity. Currently, we are taking what we have learned from more advanced countries and developing pilot projects aimed at quickly adapting to the needs of our market.

Could you highlight any new innovations ALD is planning in the near future?

Sure, ALD is investing a lot in new mobility solutions, not only in Brazil but also on a regional and a global level.

As for Brazil, we have recently revamped our MyALD digital tools suite for drivers and fleet managers, with a focus on enabling more direct management and control of their vehicles.

Soon, we will be offering even more improvements and new functionalities such as the scheduling of maintenance operations and the direct ordering of some services.

Finally, I'd like to point out our mobility solutions program for the corporate world known as ALD Sharing. Besides featuring a car sharing program and an innovative electric-bike sharing program, we are also co-creating several projects with local start-ups in the fields of connected cars and multi-modal mobility platforms.

For that latter, I prefer to keep our readers in suspense. New announcements will be coming soon. Watch out!

Picture : Youtube

Authored by: Daniel Bland