Grand Pavois La Rochelle may have welcomed roughly the same number of visitors as last year, but organisers say something important changed among those visitors. The French show has reported a noticeable increase in younger generations, alongside strong interest in small motorboats.
“We have seen a genuine rejuvenation of our audience,” says Alain Pochon, president of Grand Pavois Organisation (GPO).
GPO’s a French non-profit association that creates, manages, and runs international nautical events and boat shows. Its flagship project is the Grand Pavois La Rochelle, held annually at the Port des Minimes in France.
The show (which ran 22-27 September) closed with 59,000 visitors. While attendance numbers were on a par to 2025, Pochon says there were more younger generations attending – one of the show’s objectives.
“We know how important it is to attract new boaters and first-time buyers for the entire boating industry, and we can say that our new ‘start boating’ and ‘boat trip experience’ areas were a great success.”
The show features 600 international brands from 50 different countries, with 500 boats on display (250 afloat).
Small motorboats show strong momentum
The organisation reports a strong interest in small motorboats as being particularly significant.
Access to boating and boat ownership remains a key issue when it comes to renewing the boating community. This segment offers a wide range of versatile, accessible boats suited to different uses: day trips, family leisure, fishing, water sports or simply discovering the pleasure of boating.
“We also saw genuine interest and strong purchasing momentum in this category, which represents the vast majority of boat registrations across France and Europe. This is an encouraging sign for our industry and is helping to generate renewed momentum,” says Pochon.
“The same applies to 10- to 12-metre racer-cruiser sailing yachts, which remain an important segment.”
While he says the show took place under the prospect of the upcoming presidential election in France “which always tends to create a certain degree of wait-and-see attitude”, and the challenging economic environment, the outcome was solid.
“We recorded sales and a significant level of business across many sectors. This 54th edition has showcased a dynamic and entrepreneurial boating industry that is determined to continue opening its doors to new audiences.â€�
New areas target first-time buyers
Two new areas were designed to open boating up to new people, namely ‘boat trip experience’ and ‘start boating’.
Grand Pavois La Rochelle will return from Tuesday 21 to Sunday 26 September 2027 at Port des Minimes in La Rochelle. Details of how to exhibit are online.
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