SnowSports Industries America has released its State of the Industry Video series reviewing the 2013/14 snow sports season, which was marked by $3.6 billion in sales and extraordinary weather patterns.

In the State of the Industry Video and category-specific videos for ski, cross country and snowboard, SIAs Director of Research, Kelly Davis, an expert meteorologist and a variety of snow sports participants explain the 2013/14 snow sports sales and participation data detailed in the Snow Sports Market Intelligence Report and Executive Market Summary.

Watching the State of the Industry Videos will be 10 of the most productive minutes of your week because they give a succinct and effective overview of the data covered in the Snow Sports Main Market Intelligence Report, Davis said. These videos are another way that SIA Research provides members with valuable, actionable intelligence for the current season and beyond.

The 13/14 season explanation reviewed in the State of the Industry Video includes:

  • 2013/2014 was a $3.6 billion season, up 7 percent in dollar sales and up 4 percent in unit sales, despite the drought in California.
  • Sales of action cameras were up 10 percent in units sold to 121,000 cameras and up 20 percent in dollars sold to $41 million.
  • More girls bought snowboard equipment this year; junior girls snowboarding equipment sales grew 37 percent in units sold and 36 percent in dollars sold.
  • Alpine insulated tops sales were up 13 percent in dollars sold to $529 million and up 8 percent in units to more than 3 million units sold.
  • Sales of womens-specific cross country equipment increased 32 percent in units sold and 28 percent in dollars sold to over $6 million.
  • Apparel accessories including gloves, baselayer, headwear, neck gaiters, etc. increased 7 percent in units sold and 11 percent in dollars sold to $664 million.

Category-specific videos for alpine, Nordic and snowboard help the industry better understand the impact of the 13/14 season product sales.

Retailers finished the 13/14 season with relatively clean inventories, said Davis. Having fresh inventory from the beginning of the season with limited carry-over goods and more in-season gear means higher margins, stronger prices and increased sales for the 14/15 season.

Content for the State of the Industry Videos was pulled from the 2014 Snow Sports Market Intelligence Report and 2014 Snow Sports Participant Study, which are wide-ranging reports covering both sales and participation from the 2012/2013 season. Data from Snow Sports Insiders and Snow Sports Consumer Profiles are also included in the video.

SIA collects and analyzes all of its research, which ensures the information is relevant for the snow sports industrys unique business needs including budgeting, product development or how to write a business plan. As a non-profit, member-owned trade association, SIA’s goal is to help businesses thrive on their own and as part of the larger snow sports industry. Membership dues help subsidize SIAs exclusive research, making the data available at no cost (i.e. State of the Industry Video) or at significantly reduced pricing. Additional SIA research reports, including women-specific and juniors-specific snow sports products, will be released in the upcoming weeks.

For more information about SIA Research products including the Snow Sports Market Intelligence Report, Snow Sports Participation Study, Revisiting Growing the Snow Sports Industry and more, contact Kelly Davis, SIA’s director of research, at KDavis@snowsports.org or by phone at 703-506-4224.