Taking to the open sea may allow you to forget the health restrictions linked to the Covid-19 pandemic. In any case, this very strongly supports the rental of pleasure boats, which, once again this year, is popular with holidaymakers. Since the mid-2010s, rental to individuals through the Internet has grown significantly. In France, two platforms have established themselves in this booming market: Click & Boat and SamBoat, born respectively in 2013 and 2014, which connect boat tenants with professional and private rental companies on the model of a “Pleasure Airbnb”.
The coronavirus crisis seems to have spared this niche market. Click & Boat claims to have organized 150,000 boat rentals in 2021, doubling its performance compared to 2020. “Since people have been locked up for a while, they have saved and are spending more on leisure”, underlines Pierre-Olivier Bidault-Sire, the leader and founder of Wiziboat, another young growth which supervises the shared ownership of boats of yacht clubs online.
On these platforms, a boat is rented by the day for less than 400 euros
Alongside the traditional rental companies installed in the ports, these companies have made it possible to democratize yachting. “Whereas it was a very elitist market before, this type of leisure has become accessible”, says Pierre-Olivier Bidault-Sire. On these platforms, a boat is rented by the day for less than 400 euros. Tenants are exempt from maintenance and mooring costs, which often amount to more than 5,000 euros per year, in addition to the purchase price.
“A fundamental trend that will not stop”
By opening up to a new audience, the sector gains growth potential. “There are only one million users who own pleasure boats compared to 30 million people in the leisure market. It’s a market thirty times deeper ”, advance Pierre-Olivier Bidault-Sire. According to the Federation of Nautical Industries, the turnover of boat rental in France amounted to 215 million euros in 2019.
SamBoat plans for its part to achieve 4.3 million euros in turnover in 2021, an increase of 60% compared to 2020. Click & Boat does not communicate its own, but ensures that it has doubled each year since its launch. creation. “Growth is sustained. It is a fundamental trend that will not stop ”, predicts the founder of Wiziboat.
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