Consult to find a successor to Bénéteau at l'Herbaudière
At the end of 2020, the Bénéteau Group, the French leader in yachting, announced its intention to close its Herbaudière plant. According to the company, the site, located at the end of the island of Noirmoutier, was no longer in phase with its production needs. The staff was offered a new position in the group's other Vendée plants. As a result, the Vendée Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which manages the port of Herbaudière, quickly looked into the future of the 15,000 m² site, which represents two-thirds of the port. "We were quickly contacted following the announcement of the departure of the Bénéteau group. We had more than twenty expressions of interest. The risk of a ghost port site, which we feared, is completely behind us," said Anthony Valentini, director of the Vendée Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Meetings were held during the first quarter of 2021 to collect the needs of candidates for establishment. Of these, 9 were already established in the port of Noirmoutrin, the other interested companies come from the rest of the coast, including 5 outside the department. "It was a bit like writing a letter to Santa Claus," said Anthony Valentini.
A call for tenders oriented for the maritime and nautical sectors
The CCI Vendée is entering a new stage, with the drafting of a call for tenders to be disclosed and 2nd quarter 2021 for a selection of candidates at the end of the period. "The objectives are shared between the departmental council and the CCI Vendée. We want to reserve the site for companies with a real need to establish themselves alongside the quay and to reinforce the nautical dynamism of the Herbaudière. We also want companies that really create value, rather than storage or wintering, but rather boat building, repair or mechanics. The cumulative needs identified are 30,000 m² and there are 15,000 m²! It will therefore be necessary for the companies to dimension their needs as precisely as possible. Arbitration will be necessary, based on employment criteria, the need for quayside space, and the sustainability of the activity," explains the director of the CCI.
The operator also underlines the attachment to the departmental model of modest business fabric. He wishes to ensure the durability of existing SMEs and to regroup a pole combining repair trades and BtoC in the direction of boaters. In conclusion, he underlines the important work to make the tourist flows and the industrial activity cohabit in safety during the summer.
