This year’s International Multihull Show in the south of France featured a record 73 yachts, comprising 58 sailing vessels and 15 powercats at La Grande Motte, announced organiser M2Organisation (M2O).

The second edition of the show under the ownership of FIN (Fédération des Industries Nautiques) featured 175 exhibitors – including more than 25 new ones – representing 260 brands. Almost a third of exhibitors came from outside France, while non-French accounted for more than half of the visitors.

Caroline Popovici, Operations Director at FIN, said: “At La Grande Motte, you’re somewhere else. It’s a unique town, just like our exhibition, which is unlike any other. It’s a real gem. Beyond its role as a place to do business, it’s a great opportunity for networking and friendly conversations.”

With the number of powercats at the show rising steadily in recent years, a ‘marina’ dedicated to powercats was introduced and the new zone featured two of the 10 world premieres at the five-day show in late April.

Aventura – which builds in Tunisia – staged the global debuts of both its 38 SC (Sport Cruiser) coupe and 38 MY (Motor Yacht) flybridge powercats, while Poland’s Dracan Marine exhibited its Dracan 42, following its premiere at Cannes Yachting Festival 2024.

Leopard, with all models built by Robertson and Caine in South Africa, exhibited all three of its power catamarans – the 40PC, 46PC and 53PC – plus a Moorings 403, a three-cabin charter version of the 40PC. Aquila, produced by Sino Eagle in China, displayed its 50 Yacht inboard flybridge model, along with its 36 Sport and 32 Sport outboard coupes.

The Beneteau Group was represented by the Prestige M48 and Four Winns TH36, while other powercats from French brands include Fountaine Pajot’s MY6 (46ft) and Catana Group’s Yot 36 and Yot 41 coupes built in Portugal.

In the sailing zone, the Lagoon 38 was among the Beneteau Group’s world premieres. The 38 is the new entry model for the world’s leading builder of cruising sailing catamarans, which has built over 7,300 yachts since 1984. The French shipyard also displayed the Lagoon 43, 51 Iconic, 55, 60 and 620 Neo sailing catamarans, while other models by the brand were shown by charter companies.

Excess, founded by the Beneteau Group in 2019, staged the global debut of the Excess 13 (43ft) alongside the Excess 11 and Excess 14, which are all twin-helm models.

Chantier de L’Arsenal’s 80ft Samba charter cat and the MODX 70 – an electric version of the MOD 70 ‘Multi One Design’ by Océan Développement – were the largest models among the show’s world premieres. Chinese shipyard HeySea staged the global debut of its Seaview 59, drawn by UK-based Dixon Yacht Design.

Vaan, which uses recycled aluminium as its principal material, debuted its R5 (49ft), the second model from the Dutch-owned shipyard. Swiss-owned Cataruga – which builds in Tunisia – unveiled its Tortue 147 (48ft), another aluminium sailing cat among the world premieres. 

American company Max Cruise Marine revealed its Max 44SC after it arrived in La Grande Motte under its own sail all the way from Vietnam. Italy’s Comar Yachts debuted its C-Cat 38 sailing catamaran, with hull one – belonging to shipyard owners Massimo Guardigli and Flavia Proietti – shown alongside a C-Cat 48 Itinere.

The Tricat 8.50, a folding, transportable trimaran built in Brittany, was also among world premieres. The Tricat 30, Dragonfly 36, Neel 43 and Neel 52 were also among the show’s trimarans.

Leopard, whose sail and power models are built by Robertson and Caine in South Africa, staged the Europe debut of the electric version of the Leopard 46, with the standard model debuting at the Cannes show last September. Leopard also showed a Leopard 42 plus a Moorings 4200 and 5000, charter versions of the 42 and 50 models respectively.

Also among exhibitors spanning both the sail and power zones, Fountaine Pajot showed five sailing cats – an Astrea 42, Elba 45, Tanna 47, Aura 51 and Samana 59.

Bali, part of the Catana Group, showed six sail cats ranging from the Catsmart (39ft) and Catspace (40ft) to the 4.2, 4.4, 4.6 and flagship 5.8, while another Catsmart and a Bali 5.4 were exhibited independently. Sister brand Catana showed its 49ft OC (Ocean Class), while Aventura showed its 45 and 37 sailing catamarans in the main exhibition area.

Other sailing cats from France included Privilege Marine’s Signature 580 and 510, Ocean Rider Catamarans’ flagship ORC57, Outremer’s 55 and 52, an electric Windelo 50, and Nautitech’s 48 Open and 44 Open.

Overseas builds included the Knysna 500SE by South Africa’s Knysna Yacht Company, the HH44 by China’s HH Catamarans, and the Seawind 1370 (45ft) and 1170 (39ft) by Australian-owned Seawind Catamarans, which has production facilities in Vietnam and Turkey.

For the 2026 edition, which will be held from April 22-26, organisers have talked about a redesign “to offer an even better experience that meets the expectations of professionals and visitors alike” while maintaining the show’s “subtle mix of business and friendly atmosphere”.

Popovici said: “In a challenging economic climate, people in the industry need trade shows and we’ve got big plans for the next one, which we’re already working on.”

multicoque-online.com