Appointed head of Nautitech Catamarans on March 13, 2024, Yves Baslé intends to continue and accelerate the upmarket development of the shipyard, which has sales of over ?30m. He explains his career path and his vision of the market.
You worked in the nautical industry between 2000 and 2011, for Dufour, Bénéteau, Wauquiez and then Zodiac. Why did you come back to the sector?
Above all, fun. I was born in Saint-Malo and fell into boating as a child. It's an opportunity to combine my love of the product with my job, which is to boost businesses.
How do you see the sector evolving during your time away from yachting?
Boating has evolved, but there hasn't been a revolution in terms of production and industrialization, as there was during the major changes between 2000 and 2009, when we moved from the artisanal to the industrial. Rather, the change has come about thanks to new tools that give us the ability to develop new products more rapidly.
The technical evolution of materials was already well advanced at the time.
What experience can you bring from your stints in other industries?
We have to be careful not to transpose certain things strictly speaking. At Nautitech, we're looking for the ability to customize boats. We know how to remain industrial, by producing in a single line, often multi-product, which is important for quality, and combine this with customization in relation to customer needs.
What does your declared strategy of "premiumization" correspond to?
The strategy is the one launched by Gildas before me, and which I also experienced at the head of Wauquiez. I want to accelerate our move towards a more premium positioning. This means creating value with high-performance models, comfort, aesthetics, more customization and also adapting the distribution network to ensure direct contact with all customers. Dealers must be aligned with Nautitech's quality DNA.
We also need to adapt our industrial facilities, with flexibility, agility and a high level of quality, and allocate technical personnel from the design office to customization.
This process, already underway, will take another 3 to 5 years.
Is Rochefort's industrial base fit for purpose?
If we stay within the vision of a moderate number of boats to produce, less than 50 catamarans, which is what the market is telling us, we can do a lot in our current premises. Knowing that Nautitech's future lies in the premium segment, and that we'll remain true to the notion of small production runs, even as we move towards larger boats, our walls will suffice.
What is your vision of the current market and Nautitech's response to it?
We slowed down production at the beginning of the year and have now reached the right tempo. Visibility is not great.
That said, having lived through the 2008-2009 crisis, I can see some differences today. Interest from potential customers, qualified prospects, remains abnormally high. There's a feeling that there's not much left to sign. The issue remains interest rates and inflation. Today, commodity prices have stabilized. Labour and energy costs may yet catch up. As for interest rates, they have stopped rising and are tending to erode gradually.
What's your relationship with Bavaria?
We have regular contacts. I've worked in Germany and speak German, which is an asset. In particular, there are a number of purchasing synergies, while retaining our own positioning.
