Outdoor Retailer - Winter 2016 - 52

BREAD+BUTTER / Hardgoods
THE CUSTOMER:

The Resort
Woman
Who Are They? Resort-only women
want performance over weight savings and don't need things like walk
modes in their boots and skin-attachment points on their skis. They want
something that holds an edge when
it's firm and floats when it's pow.
The Setup: SKIS: Dynastar Glory 89
(MSRP $599.95). BOOTS: Rossignol
Pure Elite 120 (MSRP $700).
Why It's Right for Them: The
women's-specific all-mountain
Glory 89 blends playfulness, versatility and power with five-point sidecut
and all-mountain tip and tail rocker.
With women-specific construction, the Pure Elite 120 blends a
98mm last with merino wool Custom
OptiSensor liner for customization
and comfort. Flex Adjustment options and canting compatibility tailor
fit different foot shapes.
Make the Sale: " 'Resort only'
can still provide a lot of variety.
Qualifying the customer is key. Your
destination can have a huge impact
on this category as well; the East and
West have much different conditions
most of the time. Generally, we'll target an advanced resort skier toward
a slightly narrower ski (78-88mm for
women), as these skis have a nice balance between performance on firm,
groomed snow and
ease of performance
off-piste when the
conditions are good."
-Tracy Gibbons,
Sturtevants, Bellevue,
Wash.

52 OUTDOOR RETAILER

/ Winter 2016

THE CUSTOMER:

The Skater
THE CUSTOMER:

The Kickand-Glider
Who Are They? The Cross-Fit mom
and other consumers looking to get
a new aerobic workout come winter.
(Note: The women's sector of the
Nordic market rose 28 percent to
$6.3 million last year.).
The Setup: SKIS: Madshus
Terrasonic IntelliGrip Classic
(MSRP $370).
BOOTS: Madshus Hyper RPC Boot
(MSRP $249).
Why It's Right for Them: The
Terrasonic IntelliGrip comes with
a skin built into its P190 Nano base,
mimicking a standard wax pocket. "It
takes the guesswork out of ski prep,"
says Madshus's Chris McCullough.
"People don't need to mess around
with kick wax before they go skiing."
The boots envelop the foot with a
single-piece upper, from the heel
around the toe.
Make the Sale: "In general, waxable
classic skis work well in cold, dry
snow, and waxless skis rule in warm,
damp snow. Waxless skis are not a
sign of moral decay or weak character; they've come a long way in all
performance levels and price points.
Find out where the customer last
skied and get an idea of who they ski
with to help guide them to the right
choice. Someone skiing with their
road cycling friends will likely need
higher-performance skis than someone just going out with their family."
-Michael Connor, Snow Sports,
Mountain Equipment Co-op.

Who Are They? Skate skiers are serious cardio hounds, plain and simple. They're the runner or cyclist from
summer who's intent on maintaining his or her aerobic fitness level in
winter. Skate-skiing is all about being
lightweight and fast, without compromising performance for holding
an edge on those hairpin turns.
The Setup: SKIS: Rossignol Delta
Skate (MSRP $520). BINDING:
Rottefella Performance Skate
(MSRP $85). BOOTS: Rossignol X-10
Skate (MSRP $290).
Why It's Right for Them: Designed
for competitive athletes to expert
skiers, the Delta ski carries a competitive price point and makes a
great all-around offering. Rottefella
Performance Skate is a high-performance NIS binding designed
for recreational use with an easyto-use, manual open/close mechanism, wider heel piece for stability
and 60-shore flexbit. Available in
Euro sizes 36-48 (men) and 35-44
(women), the X10 Skate boot has a
lower-profile Xcelerator sole to increase leverage, pre-molded 3D cuff
with ratchet and buckle powerstrap
and Lock Down foot wrap and Active
Control heel for precise fit and natural foot roll.
Make the Sale: "In both skate and
classic, boot choice should drive
binding choice. But there can be huge
differences in size between manufacturers. Just because you're a size
48 in a Rossignol skate boot doesn't
mean that you'll fit perfectly in a 48
from Fischer or Salomon. The performance differences between NNN
and SNS/Pilot bindings are negligible. Customers evaluate the fit of
their Nordic ski boots as they would
a pair of running shoes. There should
be space in front of the longest toe,
and the heel cup should grip comfortably." -Michael Connor, Snow
Sports, Mountain Equipment Co-op.

Outdoor Retailer - Winter 2016

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