Fountaine-Pajot is one of the oldest production catamaran builders. In 1976 Jean-Francois Fountaine and Yves Pajot opened their first shipyard in the town of Aigrefeuille-d’Aunis on the infamous Bay of Biscay. The duo’s passion for sailing and boat building was born from their competitive racing on an international level. Jean-Francois won the worlds in the half-tonner class, Yves Pajot won an Olympic gold medalist, and even their current CEO Romain Motteau won a world championship sailing Hobie 16’s. Their first boats were primarily Olympic class boats such as the 420’s, 470’s, and 505’s.
Following their passion for racing they began building Half Tonner IOR boats in the late 1970’s/early 1980’s, winning not only the World Champions but also the prestigious Solitaire du Figaro single-handed race.
In 1981 the team at Fountaine-Pajot pushed the envelope just a little further by designing and building Royale, a 60ft open racing catamaran which helped the yard gain world notoriety. It was through the success of Royale that Foutaine-Pajot helped change the French catamaran landscape forever with their first production catamaran, the Louisane 37 designed by Joubert Nivlet. It was a revolutionary design that helped shape the future of cruising catamarans with a blend of performance and comfort.
While the 1990’s and 2000’s were a great period for Fountaine Pajot with models such as the Bahia 46, Belize 43, and Lavezzi 40. It was the Fountaine-Pajot Helia 44 and the Fountaine-Pajot Saba 50 that changed the trajectory of Fountain-Pajot and cemented its place as one of the leading catamaran builders.
