Which State of USA for yacht building industry?

North Carolina has the widest variety of big pleasure boat builders, and recreational boats of all sizes for that matter. Many custom builders and a large production builder, Hatteras Yachts.

South Florida and Washington State are also hotspots for building and refitting.

I agree. Washington State if you're interested in trawler and expedition yacht builders. North Carolina if you're interested in Sportfish and motoryacht builders. Possibly Maine for down east type boats but that is a much smaller scale. There are also a few builders in Wisconsin.

Don't rule out the Pacific Northwest, great area to be sure. The weather is not bad; we lived in Seattle for awhile and enjoyed it. Westport is definitely a company you would want to explore as they are more of a higher volume, if there is such a thing, "production" builder of big yachts. You should also explore the various naval architecture firms who design boats for a variety of builders domestic and foreign, and the many yacht companies that design here and but build in Asia. In Florida you have a number of large yards that do interior refits in addition to resident yacht builders like Lazzara(domestic) and Hargrave (foreign made) .

What kind of boats is your experience in? Sizes?

You're talking several entirely different markets. North Carolina has many builders with a specialty of sport fishing boats. It doesn't sound like you probably have experience with them.

Florida deals with all types of boats and a huge volume of refits. Some are in the size range you've dealt with and some above that range. There are also some builders who build in Florida and others who manage there but build in the Far East.

Washington has an interesting combination of design for boats built in the Far East. But also many builders in the state, from Tugs to very large yachts. Most of the yacht builds are beyond your experience range but some are not. Also naval architects in the area although they tend to be in British Columbia instead of Washington.

I hope you and your wife both have created portfolio's of your work. If not, you should immediately as a potential employer will definitely want to see them.