Broomfield, Colorado — One of the reasons the ski industry has been so successful over the past several years is the actions taken by Vail Resorts around two decades ago. However, the effectiveness of the Epic Pass has become a divisive topic.
Since resuming his role as CEO of Vail Resorts, Rob Katz has had a few opportunities to speak with the Wall Street Journal, including an article proclaiming his love of skiing in jeans. Which isn’t a bad thing! Nick Goepper does it, and he’s a sick skier. This time around, Rob Katz was interviewed about how the Epic Pass has changed the ski industry. In the interview, he’s also asked about the criticisms of Vail, including lift ticket prices and lift lines. The video report also looks at an independent ski resort to see how they’re differitating itself from multi-mountain passes.
Video Analysis
The video does bear some similarity to one that we shared last weekend from Bloomberg, which analyzed how big ski economies have factored into the industry.
The key difference between these two videos is that the other one focused on both Alterra and Vail. This video briefly mentions Ikon and Indy, but it’s mostly focused on Vail Resorts. Arapahoe Basin is another focus of that video, with them discussing its relationship with Vail and Alterra.
This video also analyzes Whitefish Mountain Resort’s business model and how it prices lift tickets, making them an alternative vacation option for those who didn’t get an Epic or Ikon Pass. It’s working out well for them, with skier visits up more than 50% over the past ten years.
To summarize, I like how the video got Vail’s perspective on a variety of issues, but I feel like they could have gone deeper on Alterra and Indy’s impact on the VR business model.
Image/Video Credits: Wall Street Journal, Vail Resorts
