Motor catamarans: is it really boom? The real situation

Where and how is the motor catamaran market going? Is it true that there is “stagnation”? What has changed in the demands and tastes of today’s boat owners? About all this we chatted with those who, the market knows it well: Domenico Furci, Italy manager of the Fountaine Pajot Group and Dufour Yachts.

Where the market is going

Domenico, let’s start inexorably from 2020: how has the group’s market changed?

Covid’sannus horribilis opened a euphoric parenthesis in the market, because after the period of imposed restrictions, boat owners were invested by a desire for escapism and freedom that led many of them to purchase a new boat. During this particular moment, moreover, we also witnessed new trends demanded by customers, who were much more sensitive to innovation, understood as changing needs toward environmentally friendly choices: in fact, more and more owners were asking us for hybrid or full electric propulsion and to equip their boats with photovoltaic panels for example.

Looking back and observing what is happening, what are your predictions for your group’s market performance?

Until the end of 2023, the post Covid brought an unexpected and already described euphoria that physiologically faded in 2024. This “decline in desire” was also dictated by external agents, such as wars or rising inflation, which historically restrain consumption. We used 2024 to analyze in detail what was happening to make strategic decisions for our future.

Fountaine Pajot has decided to renew the range, and the development of new models that keep in mind market demands and technological evolution has begun. Our motor catamarans are parallel projects, separate from the sailing ones. A brand like Fountaine Pajot, among the world’s top players in sailing catamarans, cannot help but pander to the ever-increasing demands for multihull motor boats: our know-how at the structural and quality level is 100% employed in the motor sector as well, although sailing remains the company’s core business.

Those who know the quality of Fountaine Pajot sailboats will also find it in motor catamarans such as the Power 80. I expect a rebalancing phase in the market for this year, leading to a new growth phase for the 2026/2027 biennium, assuming the aforementioned external factors do not intervene to influence the market.

Will the future be driven by the renewal of the range in terms of technology as well?

Absolutely. The future of the group is to give a concrete response to the shipowners who are asking us for a turn toward environmental friendliness. We also place great emphasis on the internationalization of our brands: Fountaine Pajot is already very well positioned worldwide. As far as Italy is concerned, distribution relies on 4 importers in the country. With Fountaine Pajot, we also want to pander to the wishes of the most demanding owners, creating boats of increasingly high quality.

Federico Lanfranchi