Merchants Fleet has signed a 10-year lease to move to a new corporate headquarters that would keep the fleet management company in southern New Hampshire, the company announced. The new headquarters is slated to open this summer in Hooksett.

Earlier this month, Merchants Fleet launched a new brand that includes its tagline as the "new face of fleet."

Merchants Auto, the pre-owned dealership division of Merchants Automotive Group, will remain at the company's current headquarters at 1278 Hooksett Road in Hooksett.

"Attracting and retaining the brightest minds in the fleet industry through our FleetiQ Program is a major component of our strategy for 2019, which is heavily focused on innovation," said CEO Brendan Keegan. "We are excited to develop a space for our employees that supports creative thinking, wellness, and collaboration, and we’re proud to stay in the community that Merchants has supported for decades."

The company had been on the hunt for a new location for several months with the goal of better accommodating its expanding team. In 2018, Merchants hired nearly 150 employees, including 20 fleet industry leaders, to support its rapidly expanding fleet lease and services portfolio. The company is currently the eighth largest fleet management company nationally, and it expanded its lease and services portfolio to over 74,000 vehicles under management in 2018.