Instead of red and blue states, there were red and blue stores. It wasn't the same as holding a national election, but last year, Michael Kneeland, CEO of United Rentals Inc., was charged with the difficult task of merging RSC (whose brand color is red) and United (whose brand color is blue) to form the world's largest rental company in a deal worth $4.2 billion.
We caught up with Kneeland this month in Indianaplis on the sidelines of United's annual management meeting, which hosted more than 2,000 people, including 230 equipment vendors that exhibited at the Indiana Convention Center. Late last year, we spoke over the phone about Superstorm Sandy and its potential to drive equipment rentals in 2013. This year's meeting was the first for United since merging with RSC.