I have been in the ski industry, in some capacity, for 43 years, with a 20 year foray into I.T., somewhere in the middle of that range.
Ok, I can hear many of you saying. "Dude, you were in I.T.? Could-a fooled me... this web page design sucks".
Firstly, I can't argue with that.
Secondly, I was a back-end engineer/project manager/strategist. Most code I worked with was in the ether of the netherworld most people never see. My true specialty was process design and refinement, high-end troubleshooting and system design. I didn't build web pages for end-users to see.
Thankfully.
With that out of the way, I'll continue.
A good friend recently said to me, "Why are you working in this industry? Everyone knows you don't work in the ski industry if you want to ski!"
Well, he's not wrong.
The hours I work, during the winter, are inhuman. Even considering the ski industry as a younger man's game, studies show that human efficiency tapers off severely after 30 hours- never mind 4, 12 to 14 hour days and a 10 hour 5th day (in the slower weeks). Add a 6th or 7th day of, at least, 10 hours, and it's well beyond untenable.
With expectations set, I'll keep on continuing.
Now that you know the hours are long, the next point is, the pay is bad.
Having worked in a more lucrative field (even though it was non-profit), the hours and the pay just don't compare.
For far too long I have undervalued my skills and experience by continuing to be taken advantage of in this field, for the simple reason that I love it, and I'm really, really good at it.
I've done just about everything in this industry that can be considered work; I've taught skiing, worked as a lifty, sat in a groomer, tuned skis at a very high level, fit boots at a very high level, sold high-end clothing, merchandised, snowboards/snowbaorded, sold and used tele and back country gear and X/C gear, tested all of it. sold all of it, trained staff, trained the trainer, worked as an independent rep, sat in the snowmaking control room (though, I never dragged hoses around at 3AM in below freezing temperatures), I've contributed to ski shows, run departements and shows themselves, consulted on buys for buyers, written orders, managed budgets, planned events.... it's a looooooong list and this doesn't scratch that iceberg.
All that aside, I'm not here to blow my own horn. The point I'm making is this- even with that resume, my annual pay is about half a first year I.T. person would make, fresh out of college.
You read that right.
Half.
Now, I'm not trying to discourage you. This industry needs good people- especially since it seems that people are not staying in it for any significant length of time.
Part of that, is our fault.
Many retailers hire kids in high school, with no expertise, on the cheap, to fit rentals and season leases, and restock the sales floor.
***WASH THE BOOTS!!!***
Once the rental/lease season is over they're laid off.
Very few people are kept for anything more than a few weeks, and those that last any longer than that, are considered "easily replaceable", and aren't trained to any capacity beyond basic labor so management doesn't have to pay them anything worth while. On top of that, the discounts they get are a pittance, and there hasn't been free skiing for shop employeres since before covid.
Your mountain shops are a different animal. Many give you minimal training then throw you into the fire with the expectation that you'll keep up. If you can't someone else will. You have to rely upon instinct and your ability to ask questions and absorb large amounts of tecnical information in a short time to be able to keep up- not to mention a huge proclivity for common sense, in knowing how not to screw up, and minimize problems. In other words, if you mis-drill a ski, in many cases, that can cost you your job, or, at least, that level of work in the store/shop.
That sounds like a crappy thing for shop owners to do.
Well, it may sound cold, but life isn't easy for them, either. A quick Google search will tell you that margin on skis is 30-40%. Ok, that's true... but only on lower end products (beginner skis and snowbords, package gear, etc). As you move up the "quality ladder', so to speak, the cost of those skis goes higher, and margin goes down fast.
On top of that, because we've gotten so good at leveraging technology to improve ski products every year, we've shot ourselves in the foot, so to speak. Ski models are only good for 2 years, max. The consumer has come to expect big and fancy changes in that short of a time period. So, we're forced to have to move out remaining stock in really short order. You think having new iPhone models every year is out of hand? Planned obsolescence for hand-held phones doesn't hold a candle to what happens in the ski industry.
Long story short, end of season sales.
That, in and of itself, is Catch-22, because we've, in effect, trained the customer to wait for end of season sales to buy gear, or to attend Ski Expos and tent sales for "bargain basement" deals. Sure, there are a few who truly ski, and want something because they enjoy skiing on it, but the majority of people do not have the skill set to tell the difference, so they buy the prettiest thing they can find on the cheap.
In effect, that's the perfect circular formula for self destruction.
Now, add to that the simple fact that the industry is ENTIRELY dependent upon the weather, and mega corporations are pricing skiing and ski products out of reach for the common folk, and here we are.
The ski industry, for most people looking for long-term employment, is economically unfeasible.
That does not mean that there aren't some niches to be found, or aome innovative ways to make it work. But, for the majority of people, it's untenable.
I, myself, after such a long period of time doing what I love, have the ability to consult to retailers and industry people as a "train the trainer", or as a business planning strategist (there's aren't many people who can design relevant reports and teach people how to read them like I can), but the number of people willing to pay for those services are very few and far in between. Not to mention the fact that most shop owners are old school and do most of their "thing" in their head. Very few have real inventory management processes, or understand trending on buys and sales other than a simple report generated by an expensive POS system that gets more expensive when you add the modules to do the better reporting for you (getting the picture yet?).
"Ok, so retail isn't the smart play. What about corporate or being a rep?
Well, good luck getting a territory. The current stock or sales reps have been embedded for decades, and the only way in is as a very low-level tech... for which you need to have been either a very high end (and well known) NCAA/FIS racer, or a park kid at an academy that's well known to the reps. In other words, if you can't "walk the walk", don't even think about it.
Oh, wait! you think you're good? Guess again. You're not "Olympic hopeful" good. Even then, there aren't many opportunities for you.
As for the corporate angle? Maybe. But, you need to live in proximity to cororate enclaves for a ski company and you shouldn't expect to ski much. Remember, your busy season is ski season.
So I, with an accounting degree, double-whammied myself by picking two careers that require me to work long hours during the ski season.
So, why am I trying to discourage you?
I'm really not.
Consider this a love letter to my kids (22 and 18- one graduating college and the other graduating high-school and off to a very good university in the fall). My son has worked in the industry now since he was 14, where I trained him in basic boot-fitting and threw him into the fire, fitting boots at the very high volume BEWI Boston Ski Expo. He's become a great skier, and is pretty darn smart. I'm sure he thinks he can make it work.
I hope he continues to ski, and enjoy a life that makes him happy.
I also hope he understands that finding that while working in the ski industry is as rare as finding diamonds in your back yard.
Much love to them and all of you. I hope you find your niche. If you can find it in the ski industry, god bless you. Otherwise, find something else you love to do and make real go of it. If you love it, it's not work. If you don't, you'll be finding new ways to buy beer and liquor on the cheap, or get a prescription to your local pot shop.
God Bless, ski often and long, and remember... there are NO FRIENDS ON A POWDER DAY.
