Before SUP Foil started to become popular over a year ago, Cyril Coste and some of his friends already had the idea of designing their own foils for SUP flatwater conditions. Takuma Concept launched the Takuma Foil V100, the brand’s biggest success to date, which can be used for all kinds of foil (SUP, Surf, Windfoil, Kitefoil). Two years since its inception and Takuma Concept has really taken off, with the French brand now selling and distributing its foils in markets all across the globe.
Hello Cyril, as founder of Takuma Concept, can you tell us a little about the brand?
We created the brand about a year and a half ago. Takuma Concept is a brand that designs innovative and accessible products for foiling and downwind. We are split into 2 different departments. The main office and the marketing department are based in France, but our R&D team operates mainly out of Japan and New Caledonia (where I am based myself).
You are based in New Caledonia, Why did you choose to settle there?
I moved to New Caledonia a few years ago. It is an amazing place to live and the perfect setting to test and perfect our new products. Right in front of our office there are superb downwind spots and the most perfect waves. We have many empty surf spots too and a huge lagoon in which we can test our latest creations, with virtually nobody around. New Caledonia is a little piece of heaven.
We now have a second test centre in the south of Japan where we can test out and be close to our foil factory. There we run tests on new wings, materials and boards in all kinds of conditions, with the goal of ensuring their adequacy for a number of different markets.
Can you tell us more about SUP Foil and why you decided to go in that direction?
With Richard Boudia and Pierre Yves Leroux, 2 years ago we started to design foils for flatwater SUP. It was hard to take off and we decided to mix our WindSUP (downwind SUP with the sails on the nose) with foil. The sensation of speed and flying was already amazing!
On the side, we began working on a much more stable and easy all-round foil, the Takuma Foil V100. It’s a highly user-friendly all-round foil (SUP/Surf/Windfoil/Kitefoil). SUP Foil opens up a new surfing world! You can SUP foil in every non-surfable spot out there. You just need some chops, bumps, wind swell and you’re set. It’s a great deal of fun!
What advice would you give to someone starting out in SUP Foil?
The first thing to understand is that SUP foil is a new sport. It is not just like changing your fins. So it is important to take some time to get the feeling of flying and to do it safely.
The most important thing is to have the right foil for the right task. Not a kite foil or a foil designed for windsurf. This will not work and can be dangerous!
If you’re in a position to do so, test it behind a boat. That is the best and safest way to learn how to foil.
Board shape is also important. It is super important to have a compact board. Not too long or with a lot of volume on the tail. This will help a lot when it comes to take off. It will help you pump and gain more speed.
Using a strap also assists during take-off. It helps you catch more swell on the downwinds. It can also help you move from one wave to another and control your board with greater ease.
Where can one get a Takuma Concept SUP Foil?
The brand is growing at great speed. You can find our boards and foils in a variety of countries now. We are present in most of Europe, the USA, Asia, South America, Australia, New Zealand and more. And for the countries in which we don’t yet have an import partner, you can find our products online at www.takuma-concept.com
Who are your current ambassadors and what strategy do you have in this area?
We dont especially have ambassadors. We mostly rely on the passionate watermen who are quite simply very interested in the sport such as Richard Boudia, Leo-Paul Etienne, Ishi Hisataka,Grégory Closier to name but a few. They help us promote the sport through their passion.
Il n’est jamais trop tôt pour penser à la belle saison et vous souhaiteriez investir dans votre première planche de foil ? Que vous soyez un total débutant, que vous ayez pris vos premiers cours l’été dernier ou bien que vous soyez un rider déjà plus aguerri, TotalSUP et Fanatic pensent à vous ! On […]
Juste après les championnats de France de SUP Race 2020 à Annecy, Clément Colmas s’offrait 2 downwinds d’affilée sur un run qui devient de plus en plus populaire parmi les adeptes du foil. Accompagné de Richard Boudia, le responsable commercial France de Takuma, et des frères Thomas et Nicolas Goyard, le cagou était bluffé par […]
La marque française Takuma spécialiste des planches de foil se développe. Présente chez plus de 100 revendeurs dans le monde, elle propose maintenant en complément son e-shop. Un an après le lancement de son Efoil, elle élargit sa gamme en proposant des 3 planches de foil à assistance électrique mais aussi, une wing et tout […]
Richard Boudia est connu dans les magazines pour ses trips de Waterman qui l’ont amené dans le monde entier pendant 20 ans. Depuis 2016, il est entré dans la success story Takuma, marque française 100% dédiée à la fabrication de matériel de foil. Responsable commercial de la marque en France, qu’il parcourt dans tous les […]
As SUP riders across the globe are setting new goals for the 2020 season, SUP foiling, one of the most hyped water activities of the recent years, will make it to the top of the bucket lists. Total SUP caught up with the Fanatic Team Rider and 2019 Junior World Champion, Christian Andersen aka Polar […]
Après les vélos et trottinettes électriques, c’est au tour des sports de glisse de se mettre à la propulsion assistée. Takuma Concept révolutionne ce marché en proposant un produit près de 40% moins cher que la concurrence. La marque française spécialisée dans les disciplines du foil, en lançant le E-foil Takuma propose une solution modulable […]
L’été a été chargé pour le jeune calédonien Clément Colmas. Tombé dans milieu de la glisse très jeune, il s’est fait remarquer sur la célèbre “M2O”: La Molokai to Oahu le 28 juillet dernier au milieu des grands noms de la discipline, avant de monter une nouvelle fois sur un podium sur le célèbre downwind […]
Ce mois-ci, c’est Dionis, monsieur SUP chez Chinook Surf Shop Leucate qui nous présente sa sélection de produits du mois. Dionis a commencé à travailler dans la glisse en 2003 sur un stage au Mondial du Vent qui a servi de gros déclic. “Je veux venir vivre ici” a-t-il dit et il s’est installé à […]
Et c’est reparti pour une nouvelle sélection mensuelle des produits du moments par le shop Chinook Leucate ! C’est le vendeur JC qui s’y colle en ce début d’année avec un choix très éclectique. Originaire de Reims et passionné de windsurf depuis 20 ans, JC découvre les joies du paddle depuis 12 ans, notamment dans […]
Use of cookies
This website uses cookies in order to make it easier to use and to support the provision of relevant information and functionality to you.
Necessary Cookies
Necessary cookies enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. You may disable these by changing your browser settings, but this may affect how the website functions.
3rd Party Cookies
We use a set of third party tools to provide information on how our users engage with our website so that we can improve the experience of the website for our users. For example, we collect information about which of our pages are most frequently visited, and by which types of users. Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website.
Please enable Strictly Necessary Cookies first so that we can save your preferences!