Joël Bretecher

One of our profession’s specificity is to foresee the aesthetic specification of future ships.
My first field of expertise is automotive design. I took part in the design of several Ferrari cars thanks to close collaborations with Pininfarina and Ghia.

When I founded Stirling Design International in 1976 in Nantes, I specialized in naval design with a first contract for the design of the Flyer range for Bénéteau. I designed several private aircraft interiors among which customized cabin of the Boeing 747 for the Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. During these last twenty years, I have been searching in naval design to create the future without forgetting a prestigious marine heritage.

Thibaut Tincelin

With an academic background delivered by the best European universities - Ecole Polytechnique & Delft University of Technology – the high skilled engineers from IHC and Chantiers de l’Atlantique brought me a significant professional expertise in naval architecture. After a two-year collaboration period with the cruise ship owners in Miami, I become the principal of Stirling Design International in 2007.

Convinced that the success of a project depends on close technical and aesthetical excellence integration, I find in Joël Bretecher an associate with outstanding design experience. We enjoy offering to our customer a constantly renewed creativity and innovation capability.

As early as 1991, their reputation was established when Joël Bretecher designed the finest sailing cruisers of its time: the 288ft Ponant stroke a perfect balance between performance, elegance and innovation.

Joël, who trained with top Italian designers like Pininfarina and Ghia, pursues his work for shipbuilders and shipowners in the cruising world by promoting new innovative concepts combining cruisers and luxury yachts.
Le Levant, commissioned in 1998, was a brilliant illustration of this approach. She is a pure thoroughbred of a yacht and catches the eye with her refined interior design and her elegant silhouette.
Heloval, a 140ft luxury motor yacht with timeless lines was built at CMN and acclaimed as one the of five finest units of the year by the International Superyacht Society.

A blend of superyacht elegance and raciest Italian sports motor yacht design, the Seanest Design 85 is an 85ft luxury yacht launched in 2007. This elite product benefited from the joint efforts of a new booming Italian shipyard – Seanest and the innovative drive from designer Joël Bretecher and naval architect Thibaut Tincelin.

SDI ability to drive innovative design project was clearly established in 2008 with two 140 m cruise ships contracted at Fincantieri shipyards for the new player CMA-CGM, and their key involvement in the development of a new generation of green cruise ship concept for STX EUROPE.
This latter will be unveiled at the Cruise and Shipping Miami Trade Show on March 16th – 19th 2009.