LISTEX 10th Anniversary Edition Proves A Success As The Industry Prepares For A Full Winter
The 10th anniversary edition of the winter and mountain trade event LISTEX-SASTEX took place at The Snow Centre, Hemel Hempstead on September 21 and 22, 2022.
With one of the best turnouts ever, the event was deemed a success as the industry prepares for what is looking like its most normal winter since 2018.
Concluding that there’s still huge challenges to face including the current economic situation, the power crisis and war in Ukraine and what was thought to be the biggest challenge of all in climate change, the event, organised by The Mountain Trade Network, focused on the past ten years since it launched in 2012 and looked ahead another ten years to discuss what the state of the industry might look like.
Keynote speaker Dominque Perrett launched proceedings with his talk on mountain safety, whilst James Gambrill from the Ski Club of Great Britain, presented his findings based on the recent survey in partnership with national retailer Snow + Rock.
Other forum sessions included the new Pitch@LISTEX, hosted by Dominic Killinger, which saw a number of business ideas being pitched to the audience. Iain Martin from The Ski Podcast moderated a session focused on sustainability with panellists including Myriam Ziesack (Switzerland Tourism), Sally Warren (Whoski), Charlie Cotton (ecollective) and Harry Rice (researcher). The final session was hosted by Rob Stewart of Ski Press and looked ahead to the possible challenges the industry might face in the next years with panellists, Harvey Gähl (Inghams), Rachael Westbrook (Ecoski), James Gambrill (Ski Club of Great Britain) and Chris Thompson (Firebird Partnership).
Some key information from the survey results, included:
- 48% of regular UK skiers have booked a snowsports holiday for 2022/23 vs 31% this time last year
- 96% of regular UK skiers plan to ski this year vs 84% this time last year
- Resort and tour operator websites are the most popular sources of information, inspiration and advice for skiers.
- Concerns about the impact of COVID-19 are greatly reduced
- Concerns about costs are ahead of last year but not so dissimilar to pre-Covid
- Despite concerns about costs, 4-star hotels are the single most popular accommodation choice
- Skiers may look to save by taking less trips and switching dates.
- Longer stays look set to be more popular than pre COVID-19
- Short breaks are still well behind pre COVID-19 levels
- In general, behaviour is returning to pre COVID-19 patterns, with some exceptions
- Interest in summer mountain holidays is growing amongst skiers
For the full survey results please contact Babsi Lapwood (babsi@mountaintradenetwork.com)
Babsi Lapwood, Chief Operating Officer of The Mountain Trade Network, said: It was fantastic to see such a great turnout for the 10th anniversary edition of LISTEX and I would like to say a special thank you to The Snow Centre for once again hosting such a lot of the winter sports industry in one place. I would also like to thank our sponsors, The Warren Smith Ski Academy, Alpine Connect, Après Ski Bands, Le Verre Gourmand, Chill Factore and WeMountain, as well as all our partners, speakers and of course attendees”.
Any media that would like to join the Mountain Trade Network and attend any events should contact: babsi@mountaintradenetwork.com
Upcoming events:
- SASTEX Virtual - March 17
- LISTEX Virtual - May 9
- LISTEX Luxury - June 14, 2023, central London
- LISTEX-SASTEX - autumn 2023, London (venue TBC)
