Iguana Yachts is a French

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of legal people, whether Natural person, natural, Juridical person, juridical or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members ...

created in 2008, specialized in design and manufacturing of

boat A boat is a watercraft of a large range of types and sizes, but generally smaller than a ship, which is distinguished by its larger size or capacity, its shape, or its ability to carry boats. Small boats are typically used on inland waterways s ...

s. The main facilities and

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are shipbuilding, built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Compared to shipyards, which are sometimes m ...

s are located in

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France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. The company produces

amphibious Amphibious means able to use either land or water. In particular it may refer to: Animals * Amphibian, a vertebrate animal of the class Amphibia (many of which live on land and breed in water) * Amphibious caterpillar * Amphibious fish, a fish ...

motorboat A motorboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine; faster examples may be called "speedboats". Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the inter ...

s featuring all-terrain tracks.

History

The shipyard was created in 2008 by Antoine Brugidou, former

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, in association with the

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Tanguy Le Bihan and the

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(Fritsch & associés). Antoine Brugidou wanted to create a well-performing luxury boat with all-terrain capabilities. To fit these requirements, Antoine Fritsch designed the Iguana Mobility System which enables the hull to carry the mobility system. In marine conditions, the track system is integrated in the hull and deployed (via a 90° rotation) on the ground. The tracks (which are adapted to sand and mud and built from an internal material resistant to corrosion), enable the boat to land on most of the surfaces from slopes (up to 12° angle), to sand, mud, or rocky beaches. After three years of development and two

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototype ...

s, Iguana Yachts launched the

serial production Serial may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media The presentation of works in sequential segments * Serial (literature), serialised literature in print * Serial (publishing), periodical publications and newspapers * Serial (radio and televisio ...

in Caen using local expertise. The project was funded by several

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networks ( Arts et Métiers Business Angels,

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Business Angels,

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Business Angels, XMP Business Angels) and, with their help, the first 24 ft boat was launched 2012. At the same time, production lines were designed and the company ran a stand in the international

boat show A boat show is a public exhibition or trade fair of current boat models, debuts, concept vessels, or out-of-production classics. Due to the nature of the industry building around yachting and nautical tourism, a boat show may be a social event. ...

s. The serial production was launched right after the show and the first luxury boat was sold in 2013, in Bahrain. The amphibious boat also attracts investors specialized in military and professional endeavors (e.g.

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Iguana Yachts today

Today, Iguana Yachts production is made up of 29 ft boats, equipped with 300 HP

outboard motor An outboard motor is a propulsion system for boats, consisting of a self-contained unit that includes engine, gearbox and propeller or jet drive, designed to be affixed to the outside of the transom. They are the most common motorised method ...

s . They can reach 35 knots on sea and 7 km/h on earth. The aluminum landing gear connected to the carbon fiber hull can provide fatigue resistance and has the purpose of improving performance. The Iguana 29 are used as tender yachts and as day boats for owners of beach villas. The last fundraising (end of 2013) brought 1.2 million Euros from several

private investors An angel investor (also known as a business angel, informal investor, angel funder, private investor, or seed investor) is an individual who provides capital to a business or businesses, including startups, usually in exchange for convertible debt ...

to ensure the further development of the Plan.Iguana Yachts engrange 1,2 M€, 16 janvier 2014
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140323032444/http://capitalfinance.lesechos.fr/transactions/iguana-yachts-engrange-1-2-meur-18436.php, date=2014-03-23
Capital finance
Groupe Les Échos.

Notes and references

Shipbuilding companies of France Shipyards of France French companies established in 2008