For years bordering on decades, we’ve wrung our hands over the issue of increasing participation. There’ve been programs and research and money spent. Maybe without those programs things would be worse. But so far, they don’t seem to have moved the needle the way we want. We’ve got financial, demographic, and climatic factors in the […]
Increasing Snowsports Participation: Are We Asking the Right Questions? Read More »
Last week or so, SIA President David Ingemie sent out an appeal for support for the Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month bring a friend initiative. Check out the web site. Look under “The Challenge.” While I’d love to say something strategically brilliant about the program and give you some blinding insights into its value,
Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month; Can’t We All Do Just One Thing? Read More »
I was lucky enough last week to be at IASC’s Skateboard Industry Conference. I was sorry to have to leave early, but among the things I enjoyed doing while there was making a presentation. As part of that presentation I showed some numbers provided by Snowsports Industries of America and I wanted to share them with you. Here
Some Interesting Numbers Read More »
Well, here we are in the middle of a new snow season. Among the things people are probably thinking about are: “It can’t be any worse than it was last season.” That seems statistically likely to be correct. “What am I going to do with last year’s product?” Probably something brands and retailers are both still thinking
Let’s Review; Lessons for Being in the Winter Sports Business Read More »
Like me, you probably got the SIA press release this morning with the snow sport industry’s numbers through January. And, if you’re like me, you know that SIA always cherry picks the good news and leads with those numbers, so you immediately clicked through to the Leisure Trends web site where, as an SIA member, you
SIA’s Numbers Through January: The Silver Lining Read More »
SIA recently reported that the snow sports market in February exceeded $3 billion. You probably get the same emails I get, but if not, you can see the announcement and analysis here. SIA expects the industry to set a record by the time the season ends. Through February, sales are up 13% in dollars and 8% in units. In
The Lesson to be Learned from SIA’s Sales Report Read More »
William of Occam was a Fourteenth century logician and Franciscan friar born in the English village of Ockham and, yes, somehow I’m going to get this back to snowboarding without claiming that he invented the first one. He’s the author of what’s become known as Occam’s Razor. It states, in its original form, “Entities should not
Resort Retention and Occam’s Razor; Keeping it simple makes a lot of sense. Read More »
We were looking at a recession before the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the tragedy raised the possibility (certainty in the minds of many) that the recession would be longer, deeper or both then it would otherwise have been. Economic activity has already rebounded since its nadir in the
Okay, what was I doing at the Ski Industry Summit (formerly known as Ski Week) and why am I writing about it for Snow Biz? Anybody got a problem with some early season turns in Vail when there’s hardly anybody here? Didn’t think so. Also, there was an open bar each night. But aside from the
I Think I See a Plan. News From the Ski Industry Summit Read More »
By now, you should all have seen SIA’s study “Growing the Snow Sports Industry” and NSAA’s growth model for the resort business. They don’t claim that any industry initiative by a trade association is the salvation of the winter sports industry’s issues of participation and profitability. They say, if not exactly this way, “It’s up to each
Benefiting from Recent Industry Initiatives; It’s Up to Each of You Read More »