Thesis Preliminary Research

PRELIMINARY RESEARCH

Problems I want to solve

Ski companies are making backcountry geared skis too flimsy because they can't find a balance of lightweight to durability.

Larger ski companies are only focusing on sales, not the quality of the product, because they care more about making money than  being innovative.

Smaller ski companies have a lack of awareness because they only promote culture. They do not simultaneously work towards creating strong brand identity – like their larger competition.

Research

Whether your conversing with an industry expert, or examining product descriptions on a retail website, or even just a person who frequents the slopes – there is a fat chance you have heard something on the discussion of 'AT' this, and 'AT' that. Alpine touring – AT – is for the skier who wants to descend hard in the paint, while keeping their gear light enough to travel long distances on the approach. It is also commonly referred to as backcountry, or freeride skiing. 

About a year ago, every large ski company and their mothers starting advertising that they creating and were selling new, lightweight skis that maintained a hard cut, and responsive turn radius even on hard packed snow. This is because skiing is changing! But skiers weren't approving, these larger companies weren't dishing out the goods when it came to a backcountry ski. This shift in the market is why local, niche ski companies started to become so much more popular last year. In the most recent winter Olympics, over 40% of freestyle and big mountain skiers on the podium were skiing in smaller, independently owned companies such as Moment, ON3P, and Black Crows. This was a big change from the year before when everyone was on Salomon's and Rossignols.

Large or small, ski companies are striving worldwide to solve this problem – because skiing in changing – but most of them are doing it using high end materials, or over saturating the marketplace with advertising instead of trying new shapes and flex patterns. People want an individual experience in nature now, not just waiting in lines at a resort. A company needs to step forth to bring this culture and product design forward.

Sources:

http://blistergearreview.com/gear-101/skiing-101/big-vs-small-ski-companies-whos-building-better-skis

https://www.ispo.com/en/trends/ski-touring-trend-skiers-are-driven-need-fitness-training-and-nature-experience-winter