Beneteau continues to experience a wait-and-see attitude from customers, particularly in the smaller boat market.
The Group’s latest financial results show Boat division turnover was down 33% at the end of September, after a record year in 2023.
Sales to end customers were down by around 7% with the drop in demand accentuated in Q3 by the slowdown in the multihull sailing boat market.
The organisation has seen a continued reduction of stocks in its networks (€110 million over the first nine months), in line with the forecast reduction of €100 to €150 million for the financial year.
The boatbuilder says it is experiencing a wait-and-see attitude for its smallest units, whose market dynamics are still affected by inflation and rising interest rates.
In addition, the catamaran segment is also experiencing a slowdown after four years of post-Covid euphoria, but it anticipates the launches of five new models will gradually help to compensate this.
The dynamics are mixed at the first trade fairs of the new school year.
Bruno Thivoyon
In a statement, Beneteau says sailboat sales have contracted by 25% since the beginning of the year compared to an excellent level of activity in 2023, however it is now seeing a normalisation of inventories.
The motorboat segments have been the most affected by stock reductions in the networks and sales have fallen by more than 40% since the beginning of the year.
Excluding destocking, sales to end customers have been stable since the beginning of the financial year.
A 10% decline in the number of units delivered to their owners over the period has been offset by a continued upmarket move of the product offering.
“The dynamics are mixed at the first trade fairs of the new school year, but order intake is generally better than in 2023 for the Group and its distribution network,” said Bruno Thivoyon, Groupe Beneteau CEO.
And he added that commercial activity is generally better than in 2023 at the first European and American boat shows, particularly on the largest units such as the new Prestige 5.7 and Beneteau Trawler 54 which were presented at the Cannes boat show.
Boat division revenue forecasts for the 2024 financial year are expected to be around €1 billion, with an operating margin targeted at between 4 and 6% for the Boat division.
