Canopy changes hands
Michel Sauget, creator of Canopée, a specialist who has become renowned in the field of shading sails for pleasure boats, sold the majority of his company at the beginning of October 2022. He passed on the company to another figure of the nautical landscape of La Trinité-sur-Mer, Eric Guegan. This one explains how this process was set up: "We started working with Michel when he was at Delta Voiles and I was in charge of the Mini, Figaro and Class40 circuits for the sailmaker. After 11 years, I wanted to change and go elsewhere. I changed my life a bit. 10 years later, when Michel decided to retire, he offered me the opportunity to take over Canopée. It was a good opportunity. He kept 25% of the shares for another 3 years. He is passionate and cannot stop like that. I'm keeping him with me!"
Modernize and develop shade sails outside France
Since its start in 2015, Canopée has had a great start. It is now well recognized in the multihull sector, but is developing in monohulls with different concepts, as Eric Guégan explains. "Canopée was originally designed for the catamaran. It allows to protect from the sun and to double the surface of the boat. In addition to the foredeck for the foredecks, we have developed solutions for the flybridges or for the gangways. Today, we produce 60 to 70 shade sails per year."
While keeping the local production in Brittany to ensure the quality of manufacturing, the new owner of Delta Voiles wants to print a controlled but ambitious growth rate of about 20% per year, he illustrates in conclusion. "Michel's work habits were quite traditional, with a pencil to his ear. With my experience in sail design, I bring 3D design, with a digital reworking of the models and a precision of the range. This will enable us to work more easily with international design offices and to seek out customers all over the world. Today, 80% of our sales are in France. I think we can look for customers in the United States, or in the North, with sites like Swan for example, or in the superyacht sector."
