The boat club logo is the foundation of the apparel program. A well-built burgee or crest reads as clearly on a polo chest as it does on a flag pole. A weak logo limps along on every piece. This guide walks through six logo directions that consistently work for boat clubs, yacht clubs, and sailing clubs, with examples of how each one wears on apparel.
The traditional boat club burgee is a triangular or swallow-tail flag with two or three colors and a simple emblem (anchor, star, initial). It is the format yacht clubs have used for over a century, and it still reads cleaner than almost any modern alternative.
Why the burgee works on apparel: the shape is recognizable from across a clubhouse. The color blocking holds up at both 2-inch chest size and 12-inch back size. The format embroiders beautifully because the color blocks are solid and the line work is minimal.
If the club already has a registered burgee, use it. If not, drawing a classic burgee is the safest first move. A two-color burgee with the club initials or an anchor will outlast any trend.
A crest or shield format works for clubs that want a more substantial logo for hoodies, jackets, and clubhouse signage. The shield can hold more detail than a burgee: a rope border, a date of founding, a port name, and a central emblem (helm wheel, anchor, sailboat silhouette).
Crests embroider well at chest size and print well at full-back size. They are the format most often used by competitive sailing programs and rowing clubs that want a more athletic-team feel.
Pair a crest with a smaller chest-burgee on polos to give members two looks within one apparel program.
Some boat clubs identify primarily by their home port rather than a single graphic. The port-of-call logo treatment uses the port name as the dominant graphic: large city or harbor name, smaller club name beneath, and a single small emblem (anchor, compass rose) tying it together.
This treatment prints especially well on the back of tees and hoodies for cruise-week and port-tour pieces. Members wear the apparel as both club gear and a destination memento.
Bear Grips Pro Shops: Custom Apparel for Your Team. No Minimums. Free Shipping.Younger sailing clubs, dinghy fleets, and community sailing organizations often go with a more illustrative logo: a hand-drawn sailboat, a stylized wave, a knot diagram, or a vintage maritime illustration. This style fits clubs that want a lifestyle feel rather than a formal yacht-club feel.
The trade-off: illustrative logos with fine line work can be difficult to embroider at small chest scale. Plan the logo so it has a simplified version (3 to 5 colors, no fine line detail) for embroidery and a more detailed version for print on back of hoodies and tees.
Initial-based logos work when the club name is long. A four-letter monogram with the founding year reads as compact and timeless. Yacht clubs in the Northeast and Great Lakes have used this format for generations.
The monogram is the cleanest format for embroidery. Three to four characters embroider sharply at any size. Most clubs with monogram primary logos still keep a secondary burgee or crest for full-back applications.
Clubs that do not have a graphic designer on the member roster can build a workable logo with free tools. Bear Grips Pro Shops customers have access to a logo color matcher and mockup generator for testing logo placement on apparel before printing. See the free tools section for the full set.
Clubs that want a professional logo built from scratch can also use the Done-For-You VIP plan, where the design team handles logo placement, mockup creation, and full storefront layout from the burgee file the club provides.
Burgee, crest, or monogram. We apply your mark across polos, hoodies, hats, and tees. No design fee.
Start FreeHigh-resolution PNG or SVG works best for print. EPS or AI is preferred for embroidery. The Pro Shops design team handles the conversion either way. A 300dpi PNG at 2000 pixels wide on a transparent background covers most applications.
Yes. If the club has an official registered burgee, upload the file and use it across the apparel program. Burgees that have been in use for decades do not need to be rebuilt to work on a modern apparel store.
Embroidered on polos, hats, and formal hoodies. Printed on tees, casual hoodies, and full-back designs. The burgee embroiders cleanly because the color blocks are solid.
Yes. The Pro Shops storefront effectively makes the club its own clothing brand: branded store at a clean URL, branded apparel, branded customer experience. Members buy from the club brand, not from a third-party retailer with the burgee added on.
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