Lidl Ireland has expanded its partnership with car- and van-sharing service GoCar to install a fleet of 100 pay-as-you-go cars to rent across 50 stores throughout Ireland.
In the past year, more than 6,000 Lidl customers have availed of its GoCar service, with Dublin’s East Wall, Shankill and Tallaght stores clocking the highest number of monthly trips.
Lidl initially partnered with GoCar in December 2022 to conduct an initial trial which saw 20 cars placed across 10 stores for a three-month period.
The trial was deemed successful, and the partnership expanded to 100 vehicles across 50 outlets.
There are two GoCar’s installed at every store and the project has now been rolled out across 20 counties.
Established in 2008, GoCar now has a fleet of over 1,100 vehicles nationwide. Customers can download the GoCar app, sign up and reserve cars or vans nationwide.
Once booked, customers locate and unlock the car using the app and return the car to the same location once their trip has ended.
Lidl Ireland said the GoCar service also opens up local access to low cost vehicle rental for wider community benefit, particularly in areas where car ownership is low.
“We’re delighted to expand our partnership with GoCar to provide even more shoppers with access to easy and convenient pay-as-you-go car rental and to continue to offer more in-demand services through our stores,” said Avril O’Hehir, chief administration officer at Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The initiative also complements Lidl’s existing service offering with OOHPod parcel lockers, which allows shoppers to collect their online purchases at the same time as their weekly shop.
Joe Quirke, head of GoCar Ireland, added: “Since the beginning of our partnership with Lidl, we have seen a significant rise in demand for car sharing among consumers, particularly in the current economic climate where people are re-evaluating their individual transport requirements and the benefits of car sharing better suit people’s lives.”
(Pic: Marc O’Sullivan)