Mirage Yachts

Mirage Yachts Limited was a Canadian boat builder initially based in Pointe Claire, Quebec, a suburb of Montreal and founded by Dick and Irene Steffen.

[1][2] Initially the new company was located on the second floor of a rented building in Pointe Claire, a major Canadian sailing centre that included the Laser factory Performance Sailcraft at that time and home of Laser builder Ian Bruce and the Pointe-Claire Yacht Club.

[1][2] Steffen approached C&C to design an enlarged version of the Mirage 24, but C&C turned down the effort, calculating that it could hurt sales of their models in that size range.

[1][2] Needing larger facilities the company was moved to a location in Vaudreuil, Quebec that offered 12,000 sq ft (1,100 m2) of floor space.

[1][2] As a result of a favourable exchange rate and European design, French sailboats took a large portion of the North American market in the mid-1980s and sales of the Perry-designed Mirage 30 did not meet expectations.

The winner was Phillippe Harlé, who completed his design for the Mirage 29, which was introduced into the market in the spring of 1986, becoming a quick success.