Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, May 13, 1993 TAG: 9305130087
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated PRess
DATELINE: MONTPELIER, VT. LENGTH: Medium
Abundant snow coast to coast coaxed skiers back onto the slopes they had abandoned in droves in recent years and extended the season well into spring. A few resorts are still open.
The gradual economic recovery helped persuade many ski enthusiasts to start spending again, replacing faded neon parkas and beat-up skis with new equipment.
"There is reason for optimism," said Michael Berry, president of the National Ski Areas Association. "It becomes infinitely easier to be in the ski industry when it snows. That, and renewed People remembered what it was like to go out and take that family vacation and ski. Cathy Kruzic Colorado Ski Country USA confidence in the economy, is making the difference, he said.
The numbers appear to support him. From the industry's heyday in the mid-1980s to the bottom of the slump, the number of skier visits, as measured by lift tickets sold, dropped 7 million to 46.7 million.
In the 1991-92 season, visits rose to 50.8 million and the 1992-93 figure is expected to be even higher - the first back-to-back increase since 1987-88.
In another telling sign of skiing's resurgence, equipment and apparel sales are rising after a steep slide. Sales of skis, boots, bindings, clothes and accessories were estimated at $1.25 billion this season, the first growth since 1989-90. Retailers, finding their inventories thin, are ordering for next season at rates manufacturers say they haven't seen in years.
"With two good years in a row, there's nothing left at retail," said Dave Ingemie, president of Ski Industries America. "All indicators are we're up anywhere from 10 to 30 percent. We haven't had those numbers since '87."
The industry consensus is that the statistics indicate a rebound. But no one can predict the long-term health of the skiing business, since the weather and the economy play such a crucial role in a season's success or failure.
A slumping economy and a virtual snow drought in some regions in the past few years had led to speculation that the industry and the sport were washed out.
Some of that doubt has been erased by two upbeat seasons, but none of the industry's sectors - resorts, manufacturers or retailers - expect business to return to the highs of five years ago. Experts aren't ready to pronounce a full recovery.
"We need another year like this one to begin to get any kind of breathing room," said I. William Berry, publisher of The Ski Industry Letter. If resorts get another strong year in 1993-94, "they can begin to have a little cushion to play with. They're still working so tight, so lean."
It will take time to make up for the down years, especially in the East, where some resorts failed, went out of business or merged with larger competitors.
Skeptics argue that the upturn reflected nothing more than enthusiasm for good snow, which started late in the 1991-92 season and picked up again in January this year. Some say the sport's glory days are gone.
"If we could be in charge of snow, we could guarantee the growth of the industry," said Cathy Kruzic, spokeswoman for Colorado Ski Country USA. Kruzic said resort owners should try to build on the recent upturn to hold onto their customer base.
"I think people have enjoyed a couple of years of wonderful conditions. They remembered what it was like to go out and take that family vacation and ski," she said. "To a large number of people it was a return."
by CNB