About Grain de Sail

A taste for adventure

The Grain de Sail adventure was born in 2012, with its feet in the water in Morlaix, Brittany, with the bold idea of fetching coffee and chocolate from the other side of the world, while keeping CO2 emissions to a minimum, thanks to a unique means of transport: the cargo sailboat.

Coffee and chocolate in France and wine in New York

We're always keen to offer products that give pride of place to taste. Quality organic products, gourmet and tasty, selected with sustainable development in mind, that's our daily ambition.

A human adventure

Grain de Sail brings together men and women who are committed and passionate about their work. Our project brings together employees who aspire to build a company with MEANING, where everyone contributes their bit!

Why Grain de Sail?

We played with words. “Sail” means sail in English. The French expression “apporter son grain de sel” means to make a contribution. Our contribution is to bring to fruition a project to transport our raw materials by sail. Quite simply, to try and make a difference at our humble level.

A story of sailors and passion

1 - The birth of the Grain de Sail adventure

Founded in Morlaix, Brittany, by twin brothers, experts in renewable energies,

Grain de Sail was founded in 2012. The company was launched on the idea of selecting, producing and selling high value-added, quality products, with the aim of financing the construction of a cargo sailboat capable of transporting raw materials from one side of the Atlantic to the other in a more environmentally-friendly way.

2 - Chocolate and coffee making

In 2013, we opened our first coffee roasting workshop, followed by a chocolate factory in 2016. In-store sales of our products accelerate, and we soon have a few hundred points of sale. Our chocolate and coffee ranges are expanding, our company is growing and the cargo sailboat project is taking shape.

3 - Building our first cargo sailboat Grain de Sail I

In October 2018, we signed the contract to build our first cargo sailboat. Almost 2 years later, the ship leaves the shipyard in the Nantes region and makes its first transatlantic crossing in November 2020. An adventure as extraordinary as it is complex, making Grain de Sail the owner of a modern cargo sailboat unique in the world.

4 - French organic wine exports to New York

While the initial project was only to ship chocolate and coffee from Latin America to France, in 2016 we had the idea of not making empty trips… We then created Grain de Sail Wines, a business dedicated to selling exceptional French organic wines in NYC. Improvements in temperature and humidity control were made to the cargo ship, and the first floating wine cellar ever built was born.

5 - The adventure continues with a second cargo sailboat, Grain de Sail II

Following the commissioning of our first cargo sailboat, Grain de Sail I, we decided to expand our fleet by building a second cargo sailboat, twice as large. In August 2022, we launched the construction of this new vessel.

After 17 months of construction and fine-tuning, this second yacht set sail for the first time on March 15, 2024, bound for New York.

6 - Setting up a logistics subsidiary for import/export operations

Created in May 2023 in Saint-Malo, Grain de Sail Logistics is the first freight forwarder specializing in carbon-free maritime supply chains.

GDS L combines the roles of shipowner, shipping line, freight forwarder, logistician and freight forwarder. This unique model offers a highly carbon-neutral global solution, integrated into an existing supply chain. We organize all stages of transport for our customers, using our sail-only shipping solution serving Europe and the Americas.

Our crew

Because we are aware of the richness of our products, we leave them in the best hands. Grain de Sail is an adventure of men and women, on land and at sea, who all share the same values and the same vision of their work: to transport carbon-free goods between Europe and the Americas. What we have in common is our passion!