Snow Show Day One – Recent Storms Put Industry in Optimistic Mood

As representatives from the snow sports industry gathered for Day One of the 2012 SIA Snow Show in Denver, Colorado, the mood was cautiously optimistic. Despite below average snowfall in December and January, recent storms had many attendees feeling hopeful about the remainder of the season.

“Christmas was actually good for us, similar to last year. People from out of town came out regardless of the snow, but now that it’s been snowing we’re seeing a lot more locals shopping,” said Alyssa Vance of Ski Broker Ski & Board in Fraser, Colorado.

“We attend several action sports and lifestyle shows, but when it comes to SIA we not only bring the noise, we bring the heat. It’s far and away our most attended show by our dealers, reps and international partners and Skullcandy wouldn’t be Skullcandy without SIA,” said Luke Edgar, VP of Marketing at Skullcandy.

The December retail sales numbers released earlier in the day by SIA also told an optimistic story. According to the report, the market suffered in December but sales still remained above the 4-season average and recent storms may help the market recover in the months ahead. Sales through December reached $2.2 billion, just 2% below last season’s record sales.

“Things are going great, it’s snowing – life is good and things are picking up,” commented Chris Sullivan, Brand Manager for Grizzly Sports, Monroe, Washington.

The day started by remembering a recent loss to the snow sports community.Tim Petrick, SIA’s Board Chair, asked for a moment of silence in honor of Canadian freeskier Sarah Burke, who tragically died on January 20th. Petrick went on to welcome local Denver officials to the stage to participate in the Show’s Opening Ceremony and bell ringing. Denver Mayor Michael Hancock joined Colorado tourism and snow sports representatives on stage to ring cowbells and officially kick off the 2012 Snow Show.

“We are thrilled to host the SIA Snow Show and welcome its 20,000 attendees to the Mile High City,” said Mayor Hancock. “This convention provides our region with a significant economic boost, and it also gives us the opportunity to showcase all of the great outdoor activities in Denver and throughout Colorado.”

Two new areas were unveiled on the Show floor including the BlueBird Social Zone and the Backcountry Experience. The BlueBird Social Zone gave bloggers and social media addicts a place to relax, enjoy streaming music, charge up electronics and map out their day. Over in the Backcountry Experience exhibit, attendees checked out the latest in backcountry gear, accessories while experts Dean Cummings, Mike Hattrup and Jeremy Jones shared their insights on gear, safety practices.

Last night, Never Summer, 686, Snowboard Colorado, PBR and Monster Energy hosted the third annual Ice Hockey Shootout – a fundraiser for SOS Outreach, which engages underserved youth in winter and outdoor sports-based education programs. The game featured snow sports reps from the U.S and Canada plus two former NHL players – Avalanche alumni Scott Parker and LA Kings Alumni Phil Crowe.

Tonight the industry will be getting fashionable during the Snow Fashion & Trends Show, where the designers participating in the RECLAIM Project will be introduced to the crowd. The event will wrap up with the RAMP IT UP male models working the catwalk in women’s winter fashions, all in the name of raising funds for the Outdoor Industries Women’s Coalition (OIWC). Also on tonight’s after hours calendar is the 2nd Annual SNOWDOWN, a special live concert by Dilated People’s at City Amphitheater in association with SOCO Nightlife District.

For more news and highlights from the Show, read the official 2012 SIA Snow Show Dailies at: http://siasnowshow.snowsports.org/ShowNews/SnowShowDaily/. And, for 24/7 updates, be sure to visit the SIA Social Dashboard and stay connected through the SIA Facebook page, SIA’s Latest and on Twitter – we’ll be sending highlights before and during the Show to keep you in the know. When tweeting about the Show, please add #SIA12 to join in on our Twitter feed.

– SIA –
SnowSports Industries America (SIA) is the national not-for-profit, North American member-owned, trade association representing suppliers and service providers of snow sports products with constituents in the retailer, rep and resort communities. Established in 1954, SIA annually produces the SIA Snow Show, the largest snow sports industry trade show, on-snow demo and networking environment globally, while delivering invaluable data/research reports including the Snow Sports Market Intelligence Report, SnowSports RetailTRAKTM and Executive Market Summary. SIA helps grow the industry with consumer initiatives and websites, snowlink.com and wintertrails.org, marketing products, services and programs helping our Members operate more efficiently, bring their products to market and increase participation in snow sports. Subaru is the official vehicle of SnowSports Industries America (SIA), the 2012 SIA Snow Show and On-Snow Demo/Ski-Ride Fest and Winter Trails. For more information, check out snowsports.org. SnowSports Industries America, 8377-B Greensboro Drive, McLean, VA 22102-3587 (Washington, DC area). Phone: 703.556.9020, Fax: 703.821.8276, Email: SIAmail@snowsports.org.