The Sealver boatyard, based in Sanguinet in the Landes region of France, is a highly original company: it develops rigid and semi-rigid watercraft powered by personal watercraft, compatible with all makes and christened WaveBoat. Sealver manufactures between 100 and 200 of these a year in France. Patrick Bardon, Sealver's CEO, explains: "We receive orders from all over the world, because our concept is so unique. We export around 80% of our production. In 2018, we even exported 98% of our boats. Perhaps because our communication is very English-speaking and goes a long way via video and video platforms." So much so, too, that Sealver is sometimes mistaken for an importer. "We're also counterfeit, which is less pleasing... But no, we're a French manufacturer in our little corner of the Landes!"
A solution for North America in 2024
The company develops a full range of rigid and semi-rigid boats and employs 25 people. Since 2022, several new buildings have been added to the company's production unit, enabling it to specialize in each stage of production: composite workshop, stainless steel, floats, tubes... The manager explains: "We do everything in-house, even some of our tools." The new organization is bearing fruit as Sealver aims to expand in North America in the medium term: "It's a perilous market. You have to go there under certain conditions. But we'll have a real solution in 2024 on the American market. That could change things, democratize Sealver even further."
Land reserve to change scale
The company has significant land control, which can enable it to scale up relatively quickly. Patrick Bardon qualifies: "For this to happen, we'd need to increase the fluidity of departures, so that our workshops are used only for production and not also for storage. And then we could go from producing 150 to 200 boats a year to over 400, which would be a milestone in such a change of scale."
Sealver is also gearing up for the Boot in Düsseldorf, from January 20 to 24, 2024. "There will be a big surprise. We can't say much more than that, except that we like to announce what we're actually doing. So all we can say is, don't expect CGI... "
