CNB (Construction Navale Bordeaux) was founded out of necessity back in 1987, when a German professional footballer, Dieter Gust needed a yard to finish the build of his own 80-footer. He employed an experienced yacht skipper as his right-hand man, and set up shop in a listed Eiffel-designed furloughed shipyard on the right bank of the Garonne river, opposite the old city of Bordeaux. The 5-masted France II came out of this very same yard back in 1911.
CNB specialised in aluminium structures, but very quickly got involved in steel and then composite yachts, and most recently carbon yachts too.
Alongside the building of some of the most famous of superyachts such as Mari Cha II, Grand Bleu, Only Now and Chrisco, CNB also got involved in building passenger ferries and larger fishing vessels, maintaining some of the Beneteau heritage. Using superyacht know-how, the groups purchasing power and production techniques, the synergies were immense, enabling CNB to become a key player in the 70-120 foot yacht market. The launch of the semi-custom yachts division started in 2008, with the appointment of Philip Briand for naval engineering. First came the hugely successful Bordeaux 60, of which 44 were built over an eight year period, followed by the 76, and in 2017, the 66.
In 2020 CNB was acquired by Solaris, production moved to the state of the art production facility in Aquileia, near Venice and a new range was developed. The new model range retains its offshore capability and CNB DNA. Still from the pen of Philip Briand design, first CNB's and naval engineering the hulls, with distinctive Solaris quality.
Currently there is a new 78 in build as well as a stunning 88 ready to build. The first CNB 78 will be on display in Cannes in September 2023, with additional models to follow.
