• by Tanya Gazdik , 5 hours ago

Being a Hertz Gold Plus Rewards Program member means you can skip the line at the airport rental car counter and go straight to the lot, pick your own vehicle and make a quicker getaway. 

But Hertz is giving customer a reason to pause for a moment and receive a little puppy love. 

“To help ease the stress of the busy travel weekend, Hertz has launched the ‘Gold Squad,’ a team of trained golden retrievers that greet customers at select U.S. airports during high-volume travel periods,” according to the Miami Herald. 

The dogs debuted last week at Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport and is now expanding to locations including Chicago, San Diego, and Atlanta in time for Labor Day. 

“Hertz is borrowing a marketing play from Subaru of America: using man's best friend to promote its products,” according to the Detroit Free Press. “Just as Subaru has the Barkleys, a family of three golden retrievers and one yellow Labrador retriever, featured driving Subaru cars in commercials, Hertz has started what it is calling the Gold Squad.”

The dogs have taken over the rental car company’s Instagram page, with the last 18 posts capturing their interactions at airports.

“This group of highly trained Golden Retrievers are lending our team an extra set of ‘paws’ that allows us to deliver joy in an unexpected place — helping travelers feel more relaxed and cared for as they continue their journey,” says Kari Birdsall, vice president, operations excellence at Hertz.

The campaign is backed by data: a recent YouGov study found that 70% of Americans report stress when planning a vacation, particularly around airport transfers and logistics. 

“The rental car company’s Gold Squad will be doing meet-and-greets for weary travelers at a number of airports this year, and maybe next year as well,” per the Detroit Free Press. 

The Gold Squad, named after Hertz’s gold-and-black logo, will also help Hertz employees promote enrollment in the company’s Hertz Gold Plus Rewards loyalty program.