When I first heard about Elan’s new folding ski, I heard about it through the feedback of a bunch of core skiers across a couple of sites. The somewhat unanimous feedback was:

“I don’t get it. Why? Is this an April fools joke? What’s the point?”

I held back and didn’t say anything because…well…for a sport with all sorts of logistical hurdles, I thought it was a pretty interesting attempt to solve one of those (size/space of skis).

I appeared to be the only one with this opinion. So, as I am wont to do, I dug in.

Am I alone?
First, I wanted to see if I was alone. So I looked for responses from folks who weren’t core skiers. I found them. Lots of them, in fact. Here’s a quick collection of common ones:

“Awesome idea, they’d make it lots easier to travel!”
“Loved this! What an awesome product. Nice one Elan!”
“Really tempted by the Voyagers. Will be nice not having to buy a new car just to accommodate my skis!”
“Gamechanger! Take my money.”

Surprised to so easily find this much positive feedback, I kept going.

I asked Elan for their perspective.
I found the email of Ben Fresco, Marketing and Product Manager for Elan Sports USA, and did a quick email interview with him. I’ll publish the rest at the bottom of the post, but here’s the (condensed) crux:

“The Voyager is designed [for] skiers in urban areas that are juggling a busy work schedule with travel, family, and the need for fitness. For them a quick ski trip is the ultimate fix, but traveling with traditional ski equipment or renting gear has drawbacks. Voyager allows the user to avoid oversize baggage fees…making it easy to store and travel with… This is especially important in the European market, where smaller cars, public transportation, and quick flights to the mountains are more common.”

Let me quickly recap who this is for:

• Lives in a city
• Struggles to find time to exercise
• Busy schedule of travel, work, family,
• Lack storage space for skis

Do you know know who this is NOT describing?

Us.

What we mean?
I think what we meant to say in these situations is that this isn’t a good product for core skiers like us.

Skiers who don’t travel for week each week and whose jobs involve exercise rather than sitting in an office building 12 hours a day. People who don’t live in cities where space is at a minimum and people who live where they do solely to ski as much as possible.

In other words, these skis were designed for normal skiers with normal skier problems.

And we’re neither.

Sometimes…
Sometimes our world gives us all the tools we need to do great marketing. Sometimes, however, it doesn’t. And we have to get out there and put in the effort to see our sport through the eyes of normal skiers with normal lives.

If we struggle to see that a folding ski is solving some skiers’ problems…well…we might have a problem of our own.

Because those skiers – the ones who got excited about a folding ski – they’re also the ones reading the marketing copy that supposed so remove objections (and problems) so they book another trip or buy another ticket.

Food for thought.

—
Here’s the full interview with Ben from Elan

Gregg: Hey Ben, thanks for taking a few minutes to answer some questions. First, let’s start with who you are and a quick version of how you ended up at Elan.

Ben: Thanks for reaching out Gregg. I’m the Marketing and Product Manager for Elan Sports USA. I joined the Elan team in fall of 2018 after an encounter with Jeff Mechura (President and CEO of Elan Sports USA) at Outdoor Retailer in Denver the previous January. We knew each other from my previous life in ski retail and timing took care of the rest.

Gregg: So, when these folding skis were announced a handful of core skiers questioned the need, but this wasn’t some weekend idea someone, this was clearly a long effort involving a lot of teams, research, etc. Let’s start with the idea, though, where did the initial idea for a folding ski come from?

Ben: The initial idea for a folding ski actually came from working with the military a few years ago. Existing ski equipment presented limitations in mountain warfare scenarios, so Elan was challenged to build a ski that allowed troops to ski and traverse mountainous terrain, that also had the ability to fit compactly on or in a pack. This allows the user to maneuver through tight spaces, operate below moving helicopter blades, and ascend or descend with the aid of ropes, for mountaineering or long lining from the air. The result of this project was the Ibex Tactix; a fully functional, foldable touring ski, with tech bindings and no limitations. It’s still in our line today.

Gregg: Let’s talk about the market and the research a bit more. What were you hearing from skiers that showed there was demand for a folding ski and what type of skiers were the ones saying this?

Ben: The Voyager is designed to meet the demands of skiers in urban areas that are juggling a busy work schedule with travel, family, and the need for fitness. For them a quick ski trip is the ultimate fix, but traveling with traditional ski equipment or renting gear has drawbacks. Voyager allows the user to avoid oversize baggage fees, bypass the line at oversize baggage pickup, and skip tedious rental shop queues. When it’s not in use, Voyager packs conveniently into its own custom bag which fits just about anywhere, making it easy to store and travel with no matter what your living arrangements are or mode of transportation you use. This is especially important in the European market, where smaller cars, public transportation, and quick flights to the mountains are more common.

Gregg: That makes good sense. In summer we often drive around with a trunk full of “toys” – discs, soccer ball, scooters for the kids, etc. – so we can play wherever we go. Skiing doesn’t always have the some opportunities for spontaneity, but is that part of the goal or idea? Just make it easier for someone to go skiing at the drop of a hat because they can always have their stuff with them without that stuff taking up their whole car or office?

Ben: Voyager is all about making the mountains closer. Whether planning a family vacation or traveling for business, it’s compact size makes the goal of getting on the hill easier to achieve. The custom bag is designed to fit all the gear you need and it’s small enough to store in a closet, office, or even the trunk of the smallest cars, making convenient travel with your gear one less obstacle between you and the snow.

Gregg: While my core skier friends didn’t get it, a lot of casual skiers I saw commenting on the news were clearly excited about it. What has been the response so far from skiers and the markets it’s intended for?

Ben: It’s no secret that North American and European markets are often quite different; from our taste in ski equipment, to use of public transportation, and average proximity to skiing, each market’s needs are quite diverse. It’s been extremely well accepted in Europe, which is the key market for Voyager. It also won the 2021 ISPO Gold Award, which is the most prestigious award a piece of gear can get. We’re very happy with the response, especially from the markets and skiers that Voyager is intended for.

Gregg: And, most importantly, have you had a chance to ski on them? I’m assuming there’s is some level of performance drop and it’s probably not intended for big lines, but otherwise does it skill like a traditional ski?

Ben: I had the opportunity to test it with our R & D department last spring and it was an eye opening experience. Voyager’s performance is extremely impressive for any ski, let alone one that folds down to 93 cm – there is no sacrifice in skiing characteristics. The Connect Tech plate plays an integral role, not only in allowing the ski to fold, but in the stability, grip, and rebound of the ski. As for sending big lines, Voyager will handle anything a high performance 78 mm waisted all-mountain ski will.

About Gregg & SlopeFillers
I've had more first-time visitors lately, so adding a quick "about" section. I started SlopeFillers in 2010 with the simple goal of sharing great resort marketing strategies. Today I run marketing for resort ecommerce and CRM provider Inntopia, my home mountain is the lovely Nordic Valley, and my favorite marketing campaign remains the Ski Utah TV show that sold me on skiing as a kid in the 90s.