In 1971 Kokatat began making paddle sports apparel and gear in Arcata, CA. Our founder and president, Steve O’Meara, recognized from the start that keeping production local was necessary in order to control quality and continually develop the finest and driest paddling apparel in the world. Today, over 90% of our annual revenue comes from the sales of products handmade in our Arcata factory (now 196 employees strong) and by our local and regional manufacturing partners. Yes, we do source items in Asia. But, only for products that do not have scalable infrastructure here in the US and to support our environmental commitment to Gaia® PVC free flotation foam for all our life vests, available exclusively through our Asian manufacturer.
All Kokatat products are manufactured to our exacting quality standards, developed by paddlers for paddlers over 49 years. All our products are backed by a lifetime guarantee against defects in manufacturing or materials* and our repair service facility inside our Arcata factory is unsurpassed in our industry for customer satisfaction.