The European ski industry is slowly recovering after “a disastrous season hit by Covid-19,” the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry (FESI) has said.
According to results in the trade organization’s recent annual ski market report, skis and ski-equipment sales for the 2021/22 season increased slightly from those of 2020/21. Skis, ski bindings and ski boots showed an increase in sales of around 8.5 percent from the unfortunate 2020/21 season, when winter sports equipment sales collapsed by more than 30 percent.
The Nordic ski category shows the biggest improvement, with a rise of over 33 percent from the previous season. Data also highlight major growth in key countries: China (+48 percent), the U.S. (+37 percent), Sweden (+37 percent), Norway (+36 percent), Russia (+26 percent) and Canada (+11 percent). The positive trend is expected to continue also for the 2022/23 season, said FESI.
The figures were collected from 25 of the largest European and global ski brands, members of FESI’s winter sports task force, which include: Amer (Atomic, Armada and Salomon), Black Crows, Elan, Faction, Fischer, Full Tilt Ski Boots, HTM (Head and Tyrolia), Kästle, K2, LINE Skis, Madshus, Nordica, Sporten, Stöckli, Rossignol, Lange, Dynastar, Look, Tecnica, Blizzard and Marker Dalbello Völkl.
Headquartered in Brussels, FESI directly or indirectly represents around 1,800 sporting goods companies, with a combined annual turnover of about €81 billion.
