Trends and opportunities Download PDF
The market
France is a country where the sea is a national passion as well as an economical and cultural asset. The 35-hour working week has provided the opportunity for the widespread practice of marine and leisure activities. More than 4.5 million people are now involved in recreational marine activities.
The opportunities for competitive exporters are still flourishing. Marina creation, alternative to the traditional berth, motorboat exports and boarding/water sports are just a few of the opportunities on offer. While the French market is highly competitive, there are excellent opportunities in key areas listed below.
Importantly, the French market with its discerning buyers is a good test market for the wider European market. It is said that if you make it in France then the rest of Europe will follow. Download PDF
France has a very strong domestic marine industry, in each of the three areas of defence, civil and pleasure crafts. Its biggest and fastest growing industry is the pleasure boat industry. The market has had steady growth for the past 10 years and registered a seven per cent growth last year. While being a major exporter of pleasure boats, France is also an important importer. An interesting fact is that the French boat industry has been building and exporting an increasing number of sails boats while the French public has been buying an increasing number of motorboats.
France is a mature market with a strong and competitive domestic industry. However there is evidence to suggest that the French market has shown willingness to look abroad for superior products to improve industry standards. Furthermore, a considerable leap in the number of boat licenses issued in recent years, coupled with a distinctive increase in the annual turnover produced by the marine industry, confirms that an increasing number of people are participating in the nautical sector.
Forty per cent of the French population lives within 100km of the French coast and 4.5 million people are participating in pleasure boat activities.
In addition to this local affinity for boating activities another trend is for tourists visiting France to undertake boating experiences. This has resulted in an expanding boat rental industry. Boat rental businesses renew their fleets regularly and look for high quality, ease of maintenance, high resale value and competitive pricing. The boat rental companies tend to be the most common buyers for high-priced top-of-the-range boats.
Opportunities
Key marine export opportunities to France include:
- Motor boats
- Marine infrastructures/dry storages
- Marina facilities/planning and consulting
- Boat fittings and aftermarket accessories
- Highly technological navigation and telecommunication instruments
- Board riding products (eg. kite boards, windsurfers and surfboards)
Motor boats
The French industry is focusing mainly on the sailboats since it requires less import competition (there is no major French motor maker). However, the current demand on the French market is for motorboats. The 35-hour working week has boosted the participation levels within the marine industry and created a trend of split annual vacations over a short time; motorboats are thus easier and more practical for short periods and casual boating. The lack of suitable berths in the port is another reason for this demand in motorboats.
The market in maintenance and for inflatable crafts has therefore boomed as well. While the French domestic market for the powerboats was accounting for nearly 48 per cent of the turnover in 2005, the domestic sailboats market was accounting for 29 per cent of the turnover. The figures of 2000-2006 confirm two major trends, the development of the four strokes engines, to the detriment of the two strokes engines (whose sales have dropped by nearly 20 per cent in the past six years) and, the increase in power output.
An important part of the French population considers acquiring a boat but may be reluctant to pay the full price for only a casual use. As a consequence a growing number of French are looking at second hand boats or fractional ownership. There is an opportunity for companies to franchise this concept in France.
Marine infrastructure/marinas/planning and consulting
The marine industry in France is very competitive and has a strong presence in its home market (consumers loyalty). The market demand in boats has recently slowed down by the saturation and the limited number of available places in the ports and marinas. In response the government and the local councils have launched an important number of projects of port extension, marina creation and are seeking alternative solutions such as dry storage. There are about 72 incoming projects of extension and 20 of them (about 7000 places) could be achieved by 2009.
The government is involved in those projects and is launching a full support program before Summer 2007. Australian companies could benefit from these opportunities given previous experiences in such areas. For instance the alternative option of the dry storage could quickly provide 8000 to 10,000 places. The small boats (less than 8m) represent 80 per cent of the French pleasure fleet; the dry storage could provide a cheaper opportunity than anchorage in ports for a lot of these crafts.
Boat fittings, navigation equipment and aftermarket accessories
There are some good prospects for boats fittings, pleasure crafts and marina facilities. The industry utilises 230 sea harbours and 300 river harbours along 5175km of coastline and 8500km of interior waterways, offering over 130,000 moorings. This does not include an additional 12,000km of coastline surrounding French overseas territories in the Caribbean, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Throughout this extensive network, there are a vast number of ports and marinas, which play host to a mixture of recreational, commercial and superyacht activities. The need for highly technological navigation and telecommunication instruments to support this activity is an area of opportunity.
Board/water sports
The board sports are also becoming increasingly trendy and the windsurfing sales in 2005 grew of 23 per cent while the kite-surf is still progressing with an average growth of 18 per cent.
Further information
For more detailed market information on France register your details here or for further information and to discuss your specific export needs to this market contact our France marine specialists within our Austrade European Marine Team |