Steve McCarthy is a lifelong sailor and competitive racer whose passion for sailing began at age six, racing an Optimist at White Rock Lake Sailing Club in Dallas, Texas. He progressed quickly through Sunfish racing and crewing on Snipes before his family purchased a J/24 and began competing on the Texas circuit. By age 14, Steve was already driving the boat in local regattas.

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While living in San Antonio, Steve spent several summers cruising internationally with his family aboard a Swan 47, sailing throughout the Caribbean as well as Italy, Greece, Turkey, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden—experiences that helped shape his deep understanding of sailing and seamanship.

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In 1987, Steve and his family relocated to Seattle, Washington, where he raced the family J/24 on Lake Washington and out of Shilshole Bay Marina. 

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A visit to Santa Cruz, California proved pivotal, and soon both Steve and the J/24 made the move south. He continued surveying until 1994, when he entered the sailmaking industry with Sobstad Sailmakers in Richmond, California.

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Steve returned to Santa Cruz in 1996 to work at Santa Cruz Sails, where he was involved in the full sailmaking process from start to finish. While there, he purchased a Moore 24 and actively raced in the fleet, in addition to sailing a wide variety of boats throughout Santa Cruz and the greater Bay Area.

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In 2000, Steve moved to San Diego to become Floor Manager at North Sails San Diego. His responsibilities included workflow scheduling, quality control, machine maintenance, and cross-department support. During this period, he raced Etchells, a turbo Hobie 33, and numerous custom racing boats.

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In 2004, Steve purchased Hogin Sails from Bob Hogin following a one-month transition. Shortly thereafter, he invested in a plotter/cutter and began cutting sails in-house, significantly improving turnaround times. Since then, he has continually upgraded the shop, modernizing equipment and refining processes.

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On October 15, 2019, Hogin Sails temporarily relocated to the former Svendsen’s Chandlery site before establishing its current permanent home at Bay Ship and Yacht in Alameda. Both previous locations have since been demolished, marking a new chapter for the company.