Merry de La Poeze, known for his commitment to French sailing for more than 40 years, has died following an accident.
Throughout his career, Merry has been one of the leading figures in the world of yachting in France and abroad.
His love of boating stemmed from his student years and until his retirement in early 2023, Merry contributed significantly to the development of the Jeanneau motor ranges and, more recently, of the other Groupe Beneteau brands.
Born in 1956, Merry joined the French sales team at Jeanneau in 1980 and spent a few months marketing Jeanneau windsurf boards.
He soon took responsibility for the Business Unit for the river barges ‘Eau Vive’ and ‘Eau Claire’, many of which are still sailing.
He became responsible for the development of the professional fishing ranges, later giving birth to the success story of Merry Fisher.
Merry was a human, honest and respectful person, always kind and smiling. A passionate person.
Jean-Paul Chapeleau
Between 1993 and 1995, Merry joined André Dauxin at OMC. Having become general manager of OMC France, Merry developed the marketing of Evinrude and Johnson engines and signed a strong partnership with Jeanneau.
During these years, Merry was also an administrator at FIN, in charge of representing engine manufacturers.
After the bankruptcy of OMC’s parent company in 2000 in the USA, Merry joined White Shark until 2003.
He also served as GPO administrator from 1991 to 2023, secretary from 1992 to 1995 and vice president from 1995 to 2024.
Merry joined Jeanneau again in 2004 as product marketing director for the Jeanneau and Prestige motor ranges before Prestige became a brand in its own right.
Merry contributed significantly to the acceleration of the development of motor ranges and their success, first in Europe and then throughout the world, particularly in America.
Merry retired in 2023.
“It is with great sadness that Groupe Beneteau and all stakeholders in the nautical sector learned of the accidental death of Merry de La Poeze,” said Groupe Beneteau in a statement.
“All Groupe Beneteau teams would like to pay tribute to him and salute the exceptional career of this passionate, visionary and deeply respected man.
“Groupe Beneteau also extends its sincere condolences and all its support to his family and loved ones during this painful period.”
We are deeply grateful for his generous and strong involvement.
Samuel Dubois
Throughout his career, Merry combined his love of design with attentive listening to the needs of boaters and the requirements of a large industrial group such as Groupe Beneteau.
“Merry was a human, honest and respectful person, always kind and smiling. A passionate person,” said Jean-Paul Chapeleau, former member of the management committee of the Beneteau Group and president of the Federation of Nautical Industries.
“He worked hard for pleasure boating in his various responsibilities, he was recognised by the entire profession.
“Merry was driven by the search for perfection for the boats that he developed with attention to practical, useful and attentive detail and able to put a lot of energy into imposing his convictions, but also good advice and with the desire to transmit.
Deep admiration
“Someone whole and complete. Feet on the ground, head in the stars, always with enthusiasm, desire, creativity and ingenuity.”
Samuel Dubois, sales director of the Dayboating division said: “We have lost a dear friend and a wonderful colleague. We are deeply grateful for his generous and strong involvement.
And we will not fail to think of him every time we come across one of the many models he developed on the water.
And Gianguido Girotti, general manager of the Boat division of the Beneteau Group, concluded: “All of our teams and I had a deep admiration for Merry.
“Above all, Merry was a man of profound intellectual integrity, driven by an incredible passion and dedication to his work.
“A creative leader who, through his pursuit of perfection, was able to identify and shape exceptional products for thousands of happy customers.”
