with sailboat plans.
(Al Alexio)
Jean Pierre Mouligne is trying to translate his professional sailing successes into the marketing arena. He certainly picked the right product.
The longtime Newport resident recently agreed to spearhead the U.S. sales effort for a line of high-performance sailboats manufactured by South Africa-based Aerodyne Industries. The new company, Aerodyne Technology LLC, opened its small office in downtown Newport last month.
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Mouligne was the winner of the 1998-1999 Around Alone, a solo, around-the-world race of international sailboats. He won the Class II division of 50-foot sailboats, sailing from Charleston, S.C. to South Africa, New Zealand and Uruguay before returning to the United States.
At a stopover in Capetown, South Africa, Mouligne met Aerodyne Industries President and CEO Zach de Beer, who decided that Mouligne was the ideal candidate to jump-start Aerodyne’s entry into the United States’ high-performance boat market.
Aerodyne designs and builds products using advanced composite materials, manufacturing everything from supersonic airplanes and airline seats to bicycles and surfboards. It began its high-performance sailboat business in 1998, although its exposure to the U.S. market has been limited – Aerodyne has sold just 15 boats in the states.
“The marine side of Aerodyne is only two years old, so it’s a new business for them,” Mouligne said. “But (the company) is very well-established in the aerospace industry, which technologically has always been way ahead of the boat-building industry.”
Aerodyne has culled those technologies to make sailboats built for speed and comfort, Mouligne says. Innovative features such as a carbon fiber mast, extendible bowsprit, plum stem and composite keel make for an exceptionally light, strong and fast sailboat, he said.
“These boats are designed to be comfortable, fast and easy to sail with a small crew,” said Mouligne, who previously was northeast general manager for Composites One, one of North America’s largest distributors of fiberglass and composite materials. “A husband and wife can take their two kids out sailing, but they still can go fast.”
Forging an awareness of the Aerodyne brand in the United States is the company’s first task, Mouligne said.
“People may be a little leery about buying a boat from South Africa,” he said. “It’s far away and there’s a bit of a stigma attached to it. So building a strong presence (in the United States) is our top priority.”
Mouligne said he hopes to do that by building a network of distributors in the country’s top sailing markets: New England, the mid-Atlantic region, Florida, the Gulf Coast, San Diego, Seattle and the Great Lakes region, in either Chicago or Detroit.
Aerodyne already has hit two of those markets, recently reaching agreements with boat dealers in Massachusetts and San Diego. The company’s goal, Mouligne said, is to sell 18 boats a year.
The Aerodyne 38, the company’s first sailboat, reaped strong praise from the boating world. The boat, designed by local designer Rodger Martin, won the “Racer/Cruiser of the Year” award in 2000, presented by Sailing World and Boating World magazine.
A May 1999 review of the Aerodyne 38 by Yachting magazine says the $225,000 sailboat emphasizes “the pure fun of sailing. Every nuance of the design contributes to this purpose.”
Aerodyne recently introduced the Aerodyne 43 to the international market.
The 43-foot sailboat will make its U.S. debut at the Annapolis Boat Shows in October, Mouligne said.
