Ski and snowboard sales continue to boom

• Canceled vacations freed up spending money
• Many new people took up downhill sports
• Locals invested in nearby attractions

The pandemic had a sizable impact on worldwide business for better or for worse.

For local snowboard supplier, One Boardshop, the past two years have been among the busiest ever.

“The last year was, honestly, probably one of our busiest seasons ever,” Marketer Kurtis Gunn told Kelowna10.

“We thought, ‘there’s no way that’s going to keep up this year.’ And then we actually had an even better year this year … it’s been super busy. It’s been non-stop.”

He said record sales created supply challenges, particularly around hard goods like snowboards, bindings, and boots.
Gunn speculated that strong messaging during the pandemic about encouraging buyers to shop local may have helped spur business, too.

He said travel disruptions likely played a factor, too.

“I don’t know if it’s a COVID thing and they’re just not traveling as much and they’re spending more money on things they can do locally,” Gunn said.

“Snowboarding’s definitely one of those things where you’re outside and it doesn’t seem like it’ll ever get canceled so people are investing more into it.”

The boardshop has noticed more people over the course of the pandemic who took up skiing and snowboarding for the first time.

Perhaps this is due to indoor activities being forced to shut down from public health orders.

While the store sees some travelers from out of town equipping themselves for a trip to Big White, Gunn said the majority of customers over the pandemic were locals.