Charleston Community Sailing

What Charleston Community Sailing does

Charleston Community Sailing, Inc. (CCSI) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization founded in 1999 in Charleston, South Carolina, by five fathers seeking to make sailing accessible as a life-changing activity. The organization operates from a primary sailing center at Charleston City Marina (K DOCK, 17 Lockwood Dr.) and an administrative office at 3 Lockwood Dr., Suite 302B. Its mission is to provide access, facilities, and sailing instruction to anyone ages 5 and older, regardless of socioeconomic background, skill level, or physical ability. CCSI operates with approximately five to six full-time staff — CEO Brooks Harken, Sailing Director Madeline Baldridge, Dockmaster/Fleet Captain Michael Palin, Controller Tanya Wofford, and Marketing Coordinator EJ Boilek — and is governed by a 15-member Board of Directors led by President Windy Key.

CCSI delivers a portfolio of on-water programs built around a small fleet of sailing vessels, including Youth Sailing (ages 5–18), Adult Sailing, Tuesday Night Racing, and Fleet Charters. Specialized programs include WOW (Women on the Water, launched 2015), GOW (Girls on the Water, launched 2016), the Buddy Sail program with the Boys and Girls Club, and the first South Carolina Special Olympics sailing team (launched 2005 with James Island Yacht Club). The organization runs competitive sailing programs through partnerships with more than a dozen schools (Pinewood Prep, Academic Magnet, Ashley Hall, Bishop England, Charleston Day, Porter Gaud, Wando, the Citadel, among others) and has produced alumni who advanced to top college sailing programs at College of Charleston, St. Mary's, Georgetown, Tufts, and UNC/Chapel Hill. Two CCS sailors (Carter Cameron and Ian Dilling) won the 420 North Americans in 2013, and Special Olympic athletes Kylie MacFarland and Ellinor Walters qualified for the 2015 World Games.

Revenue is generated through a mix of program tuition, donations (processed online via eTapistry), grants, and an annual fundraising event (the Annual Oyster Roast). Program enrollment for Summer 2026 is being routed through The ClubSpot registration platform, signaling incremental channel digitization. Strategic partners include James Island Yacht Club, the College of Charleston Sailing Foundation, US Sailing, the Boys and Girls Club of the Trident Area, Charleston County Parks, and the Carolina Yacht Club (which donated the original six 420 sailboats at founding). CCSI is currently developing a new Sailing Center facility to expand capacity beyond the existing leased footprint. The organization discloses no revenue figures and operates with no AI/ML technology stack or proprietary software product.

Name

Charleston Community Sailing

Legal name

Charleston Community Sailing, Inc.

Website

https://charlestoncommunitysailing.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Charleston Community Sailing is a Charleston, SC-based 501c3 nonprofit founded in 1999 that delivers accessible sailing instruction and on-water programs to children, adults, partner schools, and underserved populations including Special Olympics athletes, women, and girls.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sailing Education and Community Boating Programs

NAICS

Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (4872), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (487210), Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Water (48721)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Sailing Experiences (Lessons, Regattas, Day Sails) (THAJAJAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Educational Cruises & Shipboard Learning Programs (THAKAGAM)

Keywords

• Sailing instruction
• Youth sailing programs
• Adult sailing lessons
• Nonprofit maritime education
• Fleet charters racing

Headquarters

HQ city

Charleston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Charleston Community Sailing is a nonprofit sailing school and community boating program that delivers on-water sailing instruction for children and adults ages 5 and older. Offerings include youth summer programs, adult lessons, a Tuesday night racing series, fleet charters of sailing dinghies, and targeted initiatives such as Women on the Water (WOW), Girls on the Water (GOW), the Buddy Sail program with the Boys and Girls Club, and Special Olympics sailing. Programming takes place at the Charleston City Marina in South Carolina.

Product overview

Charleston Community Sailing is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that operates as a single unified sailing access program rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The organization provides a portfolio of sailing programs including Youth Sailing (ages 5-18), Adult Sailing, Tuesday Night Racing, and Fleet Charters. Additional specialized offerings include the WOW (Women on the Water) and GOW (Girls on the Water) programs for female sailors, the Buddy Sail program partnering with the Boys and Girls Club, and Special Olympics sailing. The organization also operates the Charleston City Marina facility and is developing the CCS NEW Sailing Center. Programs are designed to make sailing accessible regardless of socioeconomic background, skill level, or physical ability.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• WOW (Women on the Water): Program designed to give women of all ages and from all walks of life the opportunity to experience sailing and empower females to get on the water.
• GOW (Girls on the Water)

Products and services

• Youth Sailing Program Sailing instruction and summer programs for children ages 5-18, including beginner to competitive sailing curriculum delivered out of Charleston City Marina. In 2016, summer programs served over 300 area youth.
• Adult Sailing Sailing instruction and programs for adults of all skill levels designed to make sailing accessible regardless of prior experience.
• Tuesday Night Racing Weekly sailing racing program open to participants, fostering competitive sailing skills and community engagement through organized fleet racing.
• Fleet Charters Program allowing members to charter sailing vessels from the CCS fleet for personal sailing use without requiring boat ownership.
• WOW (Women on the Water) Program designed to give women of all ages and from all walks of life the opportunity to experience sailing.
• GOW (Girls on the Water) Junior version of the WOW program focused on middle and high school aged girls to grow female participation in sailing.
• Buddy Sail Program Program partnering with the Boys and Girls Club of the Trident Area that pairs a child from the Club with a volunteer for an afternoon on the water, teaching valuable life lessons.
• Special Olympics Sailing Adaptive sailing program in partnership with James Island Yacht Club for the first South Carolina Special Olympics sailing team, with athletes competing in regional events throughout the Southeast.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2016 summer programs served over 300 area youth
• +3 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• James Island Yacht Club (ChYC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010In 2010, Charleston Community Sailing partnered up with ChYC to manage their youth summer program, running the largest summer sailing program in town. This partnership engages children ages 5-18 in unique learning experiences.
• College of Charleston Sailing FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCS received a floating dock donated by the College of Charleston Sailing Foundation at founding. Together they have hosted numerous events and classes at local, district, and national levels in collaboration with US Sailing.
• US SailingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCS has hosted numerous events and classes at the local, district, and national levels in collaboration with the College of Charleston Sailing Foundation and US Sailing.
• Boys and Girls Club of the Trident AreacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCCS teaches valuable life lessons to members of the Boys and Girls Club through the 'Buddy Sail' program, pairing a child from the Club with a volunteer for an afternoon on the water while furthering the Boys and Girls Club's mission.
• Special OlympicscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2005, CCS and James Island Yacht Club launched the first South Carolina Special Olympics sailing team. Athletes partnered for competition in regional events throughout the Southeast.
• Charleston County ParksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCharleston County Parks partnered with CCS to include sailing in the parks' summer day camps, providing many low country youths and adults with their first exposure to sailing.
• Carolina Yacht ClubminorOthersAt founding in 1999, six 420 sailboats were donated by the Carolina Yacht Club to start CCS.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Community Boating Inc. Boston-based nonprofit community sailing center offering sailing lessons, rentals, and youth/adult programming with a mission of accessibility — highly comparable in mission and operating model to CCS.
• Sail Newport: Nonprofit community sailing organization based in Newport, RI, offering sailing instruction, youth programs, and access to a sailing school fleet — directly comparable in mission, structure, and target audiences to CCS.
• Annapolis Community Sailing: Annapolis-based nonprofit community sailing program offering youth and adult instruction — directly comparable in mission, geographic setting (Chesapeake-area coastal sailing community), and operating model.
• The Center for Wooden Boats: Seattle-based nonprofit dedicated to maritime education and public access to sailing/boating, including youth programs and fleet charters. Similar community-access nonprofit model and program mix to CCS.

Emerging players

• SailTime: Fractional sailing membership and charter model, allowing members access to a fleet of boats. Comparable in offering fleet charter programs (similar to CCS's Fleet Charters) for sailing access.
• Sail Caribbean: Caribbean-based sailing school offering youth and teen sailing programs. Comparable in youth sailing instruction model, though operates in a different geography (Caribbean) than CCS's Charleston base.
• Zim Sailing: Provider of sailing instruction, coach training, and program support for sailing schools and community organizations; comparable in serving sailing schools but operates more as a vendor/partner to nonprofits like CCS.

Regional players

• Carolina Yacht Club: Historic Charleston yacht club that donated six 420 sailboats to CCS at founding. Comparable as a regional yacht club with overlapping sailing programming and youth development focus.

Others

• J/Boats: Sailboat manufacturer whose boats are commonly used in sailing school fleets. Comparable as a supplier/ecosystem partner to community sailing programs like CCS, though not a direct service competitor.

Broad incumbents

• US Sailing: National governing body for sailing in the U.S., coordinating events, certification, and instructor training. CCS partners with US Sailing, making it an ecosystem incumbent and authority comparable to the anchor's regulatory/training environment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/charlestoncommunitysailing
• Instagraminstagram.com/charlestoncommunitysailing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/charleston-community-sailing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Charleston Community Sailing