So here is a discussion topic: Killington's identity. What WAS it during its height in the SKI years? What do you think POWDR wants it to be? What do YOU THINK it should be?
From what I have read, under SKI Killington was the King of Superlatives--longest season, most terrain, most innovations, most promotions, largest snowmaking system, most skiers and riders, best operations, best party scene, etc. One of the things that it was not was "most expensive." From what I have seen and heard, Pres was all about delivering skiing to as many people as he could, and getting as many hooked as he could. It was not about being exclusive. They ran midweek promotions and had the GLM skis. Their business was the ski business--when the lifts turned, they made money. Period. That was what they wanted. They were also not into real estate.
POWDR seems to want to get back to making Killington "what it was," or what they conceived it to be. Their pitch seems to be a narrower market: the same market that Okemo, Loon, Bretton Woods, and maybe even Stowe are pitching to--those who have enough disposable income to buy real estate. POWDR wants to do more with less--more revenue with less skiers and riders because in their book people want more room on the slopes and to be honest they can save money and infrastructure by having to host fewer skiers. They want to rebrand Killington to "the best," not necessarily "the beast."
I think that the SKI vision was what built Killington and what most people still associate with Killington. It took years for Killington to break down to what it was right before POWDR bought it. It really corroded. Killington, if it does not have the longest season, or the most snowmaking, or the most open terrain, or the most innovation in the industry is just another ski area. Specifically, it is a ski area that is not a "ski resort" because it has no village. It is an area that has wide groomers that one can find elsewhere. Killington was intended to be a ski area and not necessarily a resort, in the modern sense. Pres spent more energy and money on skiing infrastructure rather than building parking garages, shopping plazas, or fancy restaurants. His focal point was the sport and he made it work as a business. He built it, they came. Now I am not so sure....
From what I have read, under SKI Killington was the King of Superlatives--longest season, most terrain, most innovations, most promotions, largest snowmaking system, most skiers and riders, best operations, best party scene, etc. One of the things that it was not was "most expensive." From what I have seen and heard, Pres was all about delivering skiing to as many people as he could, and getting as many hooked as he could. It was not about being exclusive. They ran midweek promotions and had the GLM skis. Their business was the ski business--when the lifts turned, they made money. Period. That was what they wanted. They were also not into real estate.
POWDR seems to want to get back to making Killington "what it was," or what they conceived it to be. Their pitch seems to be a narrower market: the same market that Okemo, Loon, Bretton Woods, and maybe even Stowe are pitching to--those who have enough disposable income to buy real estate. POWDR wants to do more with less--more revenue with less skiers and riders because in their book people want more room on the slopes and to be honest they can save money and infrastructure by having to host fewer skiers. They want to rebrand Killington to "the best," not necessarily "the beast."
I think that the SKI vision was what built Killington and what most people still associate with Killington. It took years for Killington to break down to what it was right before POWDR bought it. It really corroded. Killington, if it does not have the longest season, or the most snowmaking, or the most open terrain, or the most innovation in the industry is just another ski area. Specifically, it is a ski area that is not a "ski resort" because it has no village. It is an area that has wide groomers that one can find elsewhere. Killington was intended to be a ski area and not necessarily a resort, in the modern sense. Pres spent more energy and money on skiing infrastructure rather than building parking garages, shopping plazas, or fancy restaurants. His focal point was the sport and he made it work as a business. He built it, they came. Now I am not so sure....
uke:
