Solaris on track to become one of the strongest high-end yacht builders

Marc Giorgetti on board Cefea Solòaris 111' © Guillaume Plisson

Marc Giorgetti © Solaris Yachts

Solaris becomes Solaris Group by adding CNB, merging know-how and technology to strengthen both brands and widen its offer.

Multiple Award Winner 2021

We are incredibly proud that our sailing flagship CeFeA, 111' has been crowned Winner of the Yacht Design and Innovation Awards for the best sailing yacht design of the year 2021 - and that's not all: the judges at last night's Boat International World Superyacht ceremony have also selected CeFeA as the Judge's Commendation Sailing Yacht 2021. The largest Solaris sailing yacht has definitely left its mark among the line-up of contemporary performance cruisers.

How it all started

Marc Giorgetti, a European entrepreneur, is a sailing passionate since his childhood. Meeting the Solaris boats, he declared: "I found a shipyard that designs and builds boats for those who sail, made up of real sailors, people attentive to seafaring, functionality, comfort in navigation rather than appearance and life in port. I had already owned boats from other prestigious European shipyards, but none of these showed me such attention to those internal and external details that guarantee comfort and safety even when the boat heels and in all sea conditions as I found at Solaris. And so, I fell in love with it".

Since 2008 Marc Giorgetti has been committed as a shareholder in the development of the company, working hard and achieving truly exceptional results.

Since then, sales have multiplied by ten and today the Group is represented by 52 dealers worldwide with a consolidated turnover of € 56 million, 70% of which consists of exports, to which € 20 millions of CNB turnover must be added, for a total of € 76 million. Furthermore, Solaris Yachts has conquered the European leadership in the high-end fast-cruiser sailing sector.

The Group

Solaris has now become Solaris Group divided into four divisions differentiated by product and market of competence, but united by the outstanding quality:

• Solaris Yachts: manufacturer of fast-cruisers from 40 to 80 feet;
• CNB Yacht Builders: recently acquired from the Bénéteau Group, manufacturer of ocean-going sailing boats from 60 to 90 feet;
• Performance Boats: high-end carbon hyper-technological maxi sailing yachts builder;
• Solaris Power: manufacturer of open and lobster motor yachts from 40 to 80 feet.

These different product lines materially express the will of the Solaris Group to affirm in each sector all the design, technical and construction characteristics that are its own and which give the boats exceptional qualities: seaworthiness, strength and stiffness and last but not least comfort in navigation. This is the hallmark of the Group, the main characteristic of each of the four companies and the underlying reason that has led to its success.

The famous build quality will be maintained and even further improved. The company will keep its focus on creating exclusive and highly customizable yachts for the expert owners.

Upcoming models in development

Solaris Yachts

The range of fast-cruisers has been enriched this year with two new models:

• 40 feet, smart all-rounder with all the famous attributes
• 60 feet, avant-garde mini-maxi.

Solaris 40 is a very advanced 12 meters designed by Javier Soto Acebal, with many features that characterize hull performance and navigation comfort. The hull features a short chine ending mid ship. The highly buoyant bow is compensated by the extremely wide stern. The cockpit is extremely large. The two helm stations located full width allow the helmsman to steer even while the sprayhood is open. The interiors, created with the contribution of the architect Patrick Roséo, thanks to the shapes of the hull, are the largest in the category and offer truly innovative design.

The Solaris 60 water lines represent the latest design evolution by Javier Soto Acebal applied to the size of 18 meters, which guarantee a perfectly balanced hull, high performance also in regattas, and smooth open ocean navigation, plus all the standards of the exclusive Solaris construction technique. Solaris 60 was born from the concept of giving life to a high-performance fast cruiser that challenges racing boats, with an overall length of 18.31 meters. Solaris 60 will be a strong competitor in the Mini-Maxi circuit, whose main event is every year in Porto Cervo. A fundamental innovation of Solaris 60 is in the cockpit, where the helm station are at full width, as on the 40, allowing the helmsman to steer the boat outside the encumbrance of the sprayhood and to always have in view the luff of the jib. The position of the helm station allows to lower the lifelines in the stern part and raise them at the two steps to get on the side decks, a solution usually used only in boats over 140 feet. Aft, different seats are available for maneuvering and steering in different sea conditions, even when seated.

Both boats are equipped with a self-tacking jib and can be handled by a minimum crew even of just two people. They are on display and can be visited in the sailing section of Port Canto at the SAIL170 stand and SAIL032 moorings.

CNB

From 2022 the production of the CNB 66 and CNB 76 will be progressively transferred to the Solaris Yachts production site in Aquileia, where a plant completely dedicated to CNB is under construction. The synergy between the two production philosophies, Solaris Yachts fast-cruiser aimed at owners oriented to performance cruising and CNB aimed at owners not only looking for maximum comfort, but also lovers of long-range ocean navigation, will from now on go to advantage of the development of new models, respecting the identities of the two brands.

The CNB 8X will be unveiled in a few weeks, leading the way for a new era of CNB yachts. Thanks to the union with Solaris Yachts, the future of CNB yachts fits into a more dynamic and reactive structure, more suitable to support this exclusive market. A calibrated tool for the production of small series with a high level of quality and customization for each boat.

However, these two brands will continue to chart their own course and develop models adapted to their respective ranges and clientele.

Performance Boats

Solaris builds custom maxi yachts at the cutting edge of technology. Since 2012 the yard has launched several units around 100' for the Wally brand and has built three maxi sailing yachts for Solaris Yachts, the latest of 111', CeFeA, for Marc Giorgetti. Currently under construction is a hyper-technological 100-footer whose hull, deck and bulkheads are contained in the incredible weight of only 11,550 kilograms. With a ballast of a total weight of 21,400 Kg, composed by the lifting keel of 5,100 Kg and by the bulb of 16,300 Kg the furnished boat arrives to a final displacement of 50,000 Kg.

Performance Boats uses pre-preg carbon technology, even in high modulus, which combines the best weight control with the stiffness and quality of the product. Also the smallest detail is made in full carbon.

The division is equipped with one of the largest and most technologically advanced post-cure ovens in Europe measuring 40 x 11 x 5 meters, which can reach temperatures up to 90 degrees C heated by diathermic oil, in which it is possible to carry out work on hulls up to 40 meters.

Performance Boats has a very advanced interior fitting department, capable of producing ultra-light furniture with aeronautical technology on a mold with pre-impregnated Kevlar or aluminum honeycomb materials.

A team of highly skilled and experienced international technicians from Great Britain, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal and Spain work alongside the Italian team of Performance Boats.

Solaris Power

It made its debut in 2018 with the modern re-edition of the lobster boat, a traditional New England lobster fishing boat, combining the charm and elegance of a historic boat with the Group's technology. This philosophy has led to a new milestone in performance, behavior at sea, technology and stylistic research. The result is yachts with a unique personality that stand out for their elegance, originality and performance at the top of the category, which are also very popular among the sail lovers. The open range has been developed on the hulls of the lobster versions, which re-proposes the same marine qualities in a more Mediterranean key, conceived for owners who love to sail.

The range of the power open and lobster boats is enriched by the new 44 Open, which actually before being presented to the public here in Cannes, where you can visit it at the stand QSP 151 - mooring QSP 026, has achieved considerable sales success with 10 units delivered. The 44 Open model offers the largest outdoor living area in the category.

Also on its way is the new Solaris Power 40 Open which will be presented at the next "boot" in Düsseldorf 2022 and the flagship 60 Open, which will touch the water in 2023, is at its final stage of design.

At the Solaris Power stand you can see the 48 Open, winner of the European Powerboat of the Year 2020 award, the comfortable lobster version of the same hull and the Lobster 57 model at anchor in Cannes' bay.

The outlook for the year 2022 is to grow in all segments, thanks to the new models of each company, and the fact that the production of the nautical year Sept 21 - Aug 22 is already almost sold out. The expansion of the sales and service network, which today counts 52 points between Europe, USA, Russia, Asia, and Australia is in continuous development.