I'm sure they have figured it out...that's why catamaran sailing has seen such a huge decline? That's why the new breed of performance oriented Hobies are coming from Europe? Seriously though, no business is perfect - who's to say that having an operation on the east coast couldn't help their business? At the very least, it's an interesting point worthy of discussion. There is some logic to it.

With regards to Mark's post:

Resins: Distributor in Los Angeles Plenty here in Atlanta, GA
Gelcoat: Distributor in Los Angeles no direct knowledge but surely they're here too
Aluminum: Extruder and foundry right here these are very common throughout the US
Machine shops: Thousand of them for defense industry very, very common
Cordage: Yale distributor is right down the street bonus
Coregated packaging: Manufacturer is here in LA dime-a-dozen operation.
Foam core: Distributor is here in Los Angeles distributors country-wide
Technical: Morrelli and Melvin are just a few minutes away what physical products do they provide?
Parent company : For Perfromance having Catalina Yachts up the street is more cost effective and offers a better level of control. bonus
Sailmakers: Ullman sails and Elliot Pattison are just minutes away from Perfromance which is helpful for battens and sails. bonus

There are other boat manufacturers that have figured out how to find materials on the East Coast. However, the shipping to Europe is an important one. While I find it strange that shipping costs to Europe are cheaper from the Western US coast, I seem to remember hearing something like that some time ago. We do have very major ports over here too however.