Snowboard Sales In Switzerland Switzerland is home to some of the best snowboarding in the world, and it comes as no surprise that it also hosts the biggest snowboard producer outside of the United States, Nidecker. After several years of phenomenal 25- to 50-percent yearly growth in sales, Swiss snowboard shops are now waging a war to keep their market share. The ’96/97 season is a turning point. Traditional privately owned surf and snowboard shops are seeing their share of the market eaten away by the big chain stores like Migros and Manor, Switzerland’s high-quality Kmart equivalents. Shop owners are extremely cautious about giving information on their sales figures. Even the Swiss Snowboard Association lacks statistics on sales! However, here’s a summation of information we learned from Swiss snowboard manufacturers such as Nidecker and Wild Duck, importers, the International Snowboard Federation, the SSBA, and a telephone survey conducted among various snowboard shops and insiders from Switzerland’s cities and Alpine ski resorts. American-Style Competitive Marketing Fierce competition is something new in a market that has always been well protected from American-style dog-eat-dog sales practices. This was primarily because the availability of gear has constantly lagged behind demand. It was also the result of price arrangements among retailers (called collusion in the United States) that’s legal in Switzerland. The final reason for the late advent of fierce competition was the fact that many Swiss chains first wanted to make sure snowboarding wasn’t a fad before getting into the market. Official demographic statistics from the ISF in Innsbruck, Austria, says that 80,000 boards were sold in Switzerland alone during the ’95/96 season. When you consider Switzerland has a population of less than seven-million, that means one out of 88 inhabitants bought a new snowboard this past winter! (Compare this with North American sales this past season: 440,000 boards sold for 250-million inhabitants. or one board per 568 people). Riding The Recession The ongoing recession hit Switzerland less drastically than other European countries, but it’s nevertheless forcing many retailers out of business every year. Successful Swiss retailers are developing clear strategies to counter the attack from the big guys. Among privately owned shops there is a consensus to concentrate on up-market equipment and specialties from smallish, hardcore manufacturers. An almost snowless European winter also took its toll on sales. Despite these challenges, the market is still growing at a healthy rate. The Swiss Snowboard Association confirms that snowboard sales have dropped from amazing annual growth rate of 25- to 50-percent, to slightly above twenty percent—which is still fairly robust. The SSBA estimates that there are more than 250,000 Swiss snowboarders. The general forecast is that the growth curve will flatten within the next two years, as demographic figures seem to indicate that almost every skier has at least given snowboarding a try by now. While less skiers are expected to convert, an increasing number of kids have their first Alpine experience of the slopes on a board—snubbing their noses at the "square" generation of adults on skis. The Growth Of Freestyle The Swiss, like the French, were traditionally Alpine skiers and Alpine boarders. Until recently, most Swiss and French "surfers," as they call themselves, had a clear preference for carving—a fact that was reflected by the high demand for Alpine boards. The explanation for the popularity of Alpine boards seems to be that Swiss snow is harder than the snow in other regions. In the Swiss Alps, resort slopes lie mainly between 5,000 and 11,000 feet. Only extreme riders are likely to go much higher. Because of this, the snow tends to be of lower quality—wet as soon as the sun comes out and iced up again when the temperature drops. Longer, more rigid boards that really carve were once the equipment of choice in these conditions. However, Europeans seem to love everything American, and the fashion and trends of the United States are playing a role among Switzerland’s younger generation. Hardcore skaters from Lausanne become hardcore freestyle snowboarders in winter. Don’t look for a carver with hard boots and Alpine board among the under-twenty set. In short, you gotta freestyle if you wanna be cool. In fact, a spokesman for the SSBA says Alpine boards may soon be relegated to the competition disciplines of carving (giant slalom) and dual (parallel slalom). Despite the new market conditions, the prospect of snowboarding’s growth in Switzerland remains strong. In fact, 7th SKY, the Swiss Magazine of Sports and Trends, forecasts that by the year 2005, there will be more snowboarders in Switzerland than skiers. If this happens, our industry has a very bright future indeed. —Michel Levin Back to Business Main