Takeover of the Sextant sailmaking company
Founded in the 1990s in Le Crouesty under the name Tasker Bretagne, the sailmaker Sextant makes a nice nod to its origins. The founders, Mrs and Mr Maulion, sell their company to Franck Perrier and David Desage, respectively manager of Rolly Tasker Sails Southern Europe (based in Northern Brittany) and former production manager of Rolly Tasker Sails in Thailand. " David wanted to go back to France, we wanted to do something together. Since I took over Rolly Tasker in France, I didn't have a floor for maintenance and upkeep. I mostly used Rolly Tasker Germany. So we went through the sailmakers and that led to the current owners of the Sextant sailmaker who wanted to retire. We have a nice continuation plan over one year with them to learn their way of working, the relationship with the customers and their know-how ", explains Franck Perrier.
Investing in Made In France sails
The project of the two partners is also based on a desire to create a range of sails made in France. " At the same time as the transmission, we are going to invest in sails made in France. But we don't want to fall into the trap, under the pretext of the cost of labour in France, of finding tricks and compromising on quality. Our position is to offer on the one hand Rolly Tasker sails produced in Thailand and on the other hand French sails, of the same quality, but with an extra cost of between 10 and 15% ", summarizes the co-manager.
For this, laser cutting machines have already been ordered and the sail design software has been chosen. Synergies will be found to distribute the French sails, under the Sextant brand, through the Rolly Tasker network, which has been redeveloped in France over the last few years by Franck Perrier.
Developments in yacht distribution
After having ensured the success of the transmission, particularly with customers, Franck Perrier and David Desage wish to develop the sailmaking market, but also to start selling boats. " The first priority will be to broaden our geographical area, by better covering areas such as the Vilaine. We are also going to work on the shade cloth market. Finally, the 3rd axis is an extension as a shipyard and distributor of ocean-going multihulls. Discussions are also underway for a monohull brand "Franck Perrier is delighted. The location of the shipyard, which will allow for maintenance and after-sales service, is still being studied between various solutions, while the final signatures with the manufacturers of distributed yachts are being finalized.
