Paris, France: French luxury brand Hermes is exiting a luxury yacht joint venture with shipbuilder Wally, saying it is not experienced enough to complete the project, its chief executive told Reuters.

The two partners had unveiled a full-sized model of their mega yacht, “WHY”, in Monte Carlo in September.

“We are currently in the phase of carrying out the project, which is technically complex and which requires on-the-spot decisions,” said Hermes CEO Patrick Thomas.

“It seemed a good idea to us to have only one decision-maker and we naturally decided to hand the reins over to Wally.”

Hermes, which is famous for its silk scarves and handbags, will sell its stake to Monaco-based Wally and will be paid back via commissions on boat sales through to 2020, Thomas said.

Although Hermes also works on helicopter design in partnership with EADS, it does not have comparable ship design experience, he added.

The price of the WHY yacht, which recently went on display at the Abu Dhabi yacht show, ranges between 50 million euros ($95 million) to 100 million.

None of the yachts has yet been sold.