These Ski Brands Are Purposely Skipping The Black Friday Hype
We’re definitely suckers for a good deal, especially right before ski season–but there’s plenty of good reasons that some brands are skipping the whole Black Friday/Cyber Monday thing on principle. For one, rampant consumerism and the never-ending drive to always want the next greatest thing lead to over-consumption and unsustainable manufacturing industry-wide. Turns out, that’s one of the main drivers of climate change, which is directly–and at this point likely irreversibly–affecting snowsports.
That’s why a growing handful of brands across the ski industry sphere are simply not playing along with that part of the game. Brands like 1000 Skis, Stellar Equipment, and even Elan Skis won’t be offering massive discounts over the next few days, citing everything from sustainability concerns to the fact that it’s killing core ski culture.
1000 Skis
As one of the few ski brands that operates as a certified B Corp, 1000 Skis takes their commitment to sustainability pretty seriously. The small skier-owned Swedish brand was started with the express intention of doing things differently. For one, their ski lineup doesn’t change from year to year just to include a new topsheet to encourage customers to buy new skis. Instead, every one of their skis features the same bright-red colorway.
For the holiday shopping season, 1000 Skis issued the following statement on their Instagram story that explains their mindset around discounting gear. In an industry inundated with huge sales come the end of the season, it’s definitely a refreshing take and a strong reminder that those skis from last year haven’t magically gotten any worse.
“WE DONT DO DISCOUNTS.
THIS IS A PART OF RUNNING A SOCIALLY & ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE COMPANY.
OUR PRICES REFLECT THE PERFORMANCE, QUALITY & MATERIALS IN OUR SKIS.
WE DON’T BELIEVE IT IS FAIR TO OURSELVES OR OUR CUSTOMERS TO SET A HIGHER PRICE IN JANUARY AND A LOWER PRICE IN MARCH AS THAT WOULD MEAN THAT ONE OF THOSE TWO PRICES ARE LYING.
WE BELIEVE IN THE LONGEVITY OF OUR PRODUCT & OUR CORE VALUE IS TO SELL OUR SKIS BASED ON PERFORMANCE & QUALITY.”
Stellar Equipment
There must be something in the water in Scandinavia, because here’s another Swedish brand that’s eschewing short-term profits for the greater good. Instead of chasing predictably unsustainable trends, Stellar Equipment is doubling down on their core message of producing clothing and equipment that provides long-lasting quality.
POWDER Contributor Jack Stauss interviewed Stellar’s founder and CEO John Crawford-Currie last year, and the conversation focused heavily on issues Crawford-Currie has identified within the industry–namely that ski and apparel makers have become focused on selling fashion. To him, that’s clearly not a long-term way of thinking about a sustainable business, especially when the downstream impacts directly affect the survivability of skiing itself. Instead, he aims to slow things down and says, “because our product cycle is a few years, we can actually spend time and do it right. It doesn’t mean we always get it right, but we have the time to work on it.”
Elan Skis
In a world of internet-driven consumption, Elan Skis is taking a different path. They’re not entirely skipping the Black Friday season, but they’re definitely doing things differently than most. Instead of offering to take a small hit on their profit margin to encourage more e-commerce sales, Elan is telling you to visit your local brick-and-mortar ski shop instead.
“Retailers remain the heart and soul of our business,” says Jeff Mechura, CEO and President of Elan Skis in a press release. “There is nothing like walking into a true ski shop. It’s the last piece of authentic ski culture we have. The stories, the laughs, the warm banter with staff—these experiences are intangible and irreplaceable. They’re the heartbeat of skiing.”
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