Beneteau, the 140th anniversary of the world’s largest boat manufacturer

A tribute to the companies and people who have made Barche a Motore great over these 35 years allowing it to be born, grow, and become great up to this historic anniversary. In these articles the great excellences of boating tell their stories and reveal their projects, making an important contribution to the knowledge of this world, which allows us all to go to sea, in all forms and contexts.

Passion, boldness, innovation

The Beneteau Group celebrated 140 years and today is the world’s largest boat manufacturer while remaining true to the principle of offering the right solution for anyone who wants to have an unforgettable experience on the water.

One hundred and forty years ago, in 1884, Benjamin Beneteau, in Saint Giles Croix de Vie in the Vendée, had a crazy and disruptive idea for the time: put an inboard engine in sailing vessels. One hundred and forty years later, in 2025, the Beneteau Group is still headquartered in the French town overlooking the ocean where the Beneteau epic was born. Today it is the world’s largest manufacturer of pleasure boats, sail and power. It puts more than 4,000 of them in the water each year, from 6 to 24 meters, ranging from 50,000 euros to 8 million produced in some 20 shipyards around the world. Nine main brands: Beneteau, Jeanneau, Prestige, Lagoon, Excess, Delphia, Four Winns, Wellcraft, Scarab. One hundred and forty years ago the secret of Beneteau ‘s early success was that by installing an engine on a sailboat, the fishing boat built by the progenitor Benjamin returned to port before the others. As a result, the day’s catch arrived first at the fish market, dictating the price. A competitive advantage born of innovation, passion for the sea, and the audacity to dare. That spirit that allows one to be one step ahead of the rest can be sensed upon entering Beneteau’s headquarters, in front of that ocean where Benjamin tested the hulls of his boats, where the first sailing and motor fishing boat yard was born from which it all began. On the walls are historical images of Beneteau. Big space for Annette Roux, Benjamin’s granddaughter who, with her brothers André and Yvon, represented Beneteau’s second life in the late 1960s, aided by the advent of mass production of fiberglass. Here is a 1985 photo of Annette with designer Philippe Starck, capturing when for the first time in yachting history a designer took on a boat. We find another key image again, that of the first “peche promenade” Antares 7.50 that in 1977 opened the doors of the world to Beneteau, making it what it is today, the world’s largest nautical group. Annette returns in the 1984 image where, coinciding with the shipyard’s centennial, it listed on the Paris stock exchange. Even today, the majority of the Beneteau Group is in the founder’s family, which holds 65 percent of the shares. And Mrs. Roux, at 83, is still the source of inspiration for strategic decisions and is president of the Beneteau Foundation as well as a member of the board of directors. The following year, in 1985, Beneteau bought its main rival, Jeanneau, beginning the multi-brand diversification and acquisitions that come to this day. Most recent this year was the purchase of the BMS ship yard in southern France, one of the leading shipyards for cruising multihulls.

Girotti’s sense of Beneteau

At the helm of Groupe Beneteau ‘s 6,500 employees today is Italian Gianguido Girotti, 48, managing director delegate with French Bruno Thivoyon, 51. Girotti is in charge of the boat division. And it is with him that we talk about what Groupe Beneteau is today, at the head quarter by the sea.

“We remain true to our motto Bringing dreams to water, the DNA of the Beneteau Group for 140 years. It expresses the desire to bring as many people as possible to the water so they can have unforgettable experiences. There are more than 120,000 owners who sail on a Beneteau; half a million people board a charter boat built by us each year. To make an estimate, more than a million set foot on one of our boats each year.

A difficult business of satisfying everyone….
“Yes, because a 50,000-euro boat does not have the same dynamics as a 3-million-euro boat, and it has to respond specifically to the market segment it addresses. One must not stand still; one must understand when new needs arise, innovating. An emblematic example, that of the trawler segment, a segment that seemed immutable. Beneteau revolutionized it, designing the product around the consumer. Today we are the market leader in a reinvented segment that we can call, borrowing automotive jargon, a hybrid, a crossover. Or simply an explorer within the reach of a wide audience. This has been Beneteau ‘s secret for 140 years.

You are the largest boat manufacturers. But what does it mean to produce boats in large series, is it an advantage or not?
Simply put, it means a higher level of quality and reliability. Building five boats is one thing, making 50 of the same model is another story. You have to invest on a higher level of quality a meticulous ‘control point’ work, an engineering where everything is inspectable and replaceable. Because a boat is a complex, very complex object. That needs maintenance, repairs, improvements throughout its life. This philosophy of obsession with quality I experienced firsthand when I came to Beneteau and was product manager. I had to make sure that the design was compatible with the ability not only to mass build a boat and build it in the most optimized time possible, but also that the components and accessories were inspectable, easily repairable. A job that Beneteau knows how to do, with a unique understanding of the process of “building well.” Besides, let’s dispel a myth: to make a production efficient is not to save money on the product, but to offer the best possible price to the customer for a high-quality product.

You were born a designer then became a manager. How important is innovation in the Beneteau group today?
Innovation has been everything for Beneteau for 140 years. Let me give you a simple example. The Prestige brand born in 2009 from a rib of Jeanneau. Today it is a “market leader” in the Flybridge segment up to 60 feet while continuing to develop product innovazine, as in the iconic Prestige 500 of 2009 where the galley for the first time was at the same level as the salon, the master cabin was a true suite, the view to the whole was 360°. Products designed back to the customer, without ostentation, offering the best “value proposition.”

Beneteau thinking about the future?
Yes, of course. With innovation, boldness, passion. Like the Island Cruising Concept that totally rethinks the onboard experience by reducing technical skills and integrating hybrid propulsion technologies. So we make boating more intuitive, incentivize the desire to be on board for longer, more in tune with today’s needs. The boat remains perhaps the cheapest tool you can have to access the privilege of living by the sea versus living in a house. And you live on the sea.

www.beneteau-group.com