Ski Press World Inc. - Index

Ski Press World Inc. - SIA Day 3 - Index

Photo: Courtesy of Bonfi re/Stan Evans/Rider: Josh Sherman
cover story
One
Family;
32 SNOWPRESS DAY 3 skipressworld.com/snowpress
Photo: Courtesy of Burton/Curtes
Snowboarders
USING RESEARCH FROM SIA’S INTELLIGENCE REPORT,
SIA’S BEST PRACTICES AND SIA’S RETAIL AUDIT, PART
THREE OF OUR SERIES ON SNOWSPORTS FAMILIES
FOCUSES ON SOME OF THE BEST WAYS TO SELL TO
SNOWBOARDERS.
The Internet is a great and glorious thing. But I don’t believe good salespeople need worry too much. Take the Parkers for
instance, our fi ctional family of snowboarders. They’re a lot like many families I’ve met in the ski business over the years.
Chris and Kat Parker met each other the winter they both chose to celebrate the end of their formal college education by
putting their degrees to good use… being ski bums. Well, snowboard bums, to be accurate. Neither of them had ever skied nor
were particularly close with people who did. But there was a time in their lives when their world revolved around the hill.
They both worked in the IT department, shredded the mountain on their days off and closed the clubs at night. They
joked they didn’t manage to “fi nd” themselves that year but settled for fi nding each other.
Their passion for boarding cooled when they moved out of the mountains and got real jobs. It chilled out completely
when their fi rst child was born and didn’t rekindle until he hit the 5th grade and came home with a fl yer touting the
benefi ts of the Grade 5 passport program. Since then, they’ve tracked the prevailing demographic as reported in SIA’s
2007 Intelligence Report. They manage to ride about 10 days a season and, while they’ve scoured swaps and garage
sales to fi nd kids’ gear, they’re still riding BC (Before Children) boards.
But heading into this winter, they promised the kids new — brand new — gear. With Chris’ career moving along nicely
and Kat’s home-based IT business bringing in more than expected, they’ve even decided to treat themselves to new
gear and outerwear with a bit more current style.
VOLVO — OFFICIAL CAR OF
Photo: Courtesy of Burton/Owen