Selling Snow

What do you think of when you hear the word Alta? Big mountains, deep snow, laid-back chill vibe. Whatever it is, you definitely have an image. Whether you’ve been there or just dreamt about it, Alta has built a mythical legend, and for many is a powder mecca on their bucket list.

Today we're heading to one of the most iconic mountains in North America: Alta Ski Area in Utah. A place famous for legendary powder, deep skiing traditions, and a business philosophy that basically says, "Just because everyone else is doing it doesn't mean we should."

In this episode, I'm joined by Marketing Director Brandon Ott and PR & Communications Manager Lexi Dowdall as we dig into how Alta has protected its brand for nearly 90 years, why they deliberately don't chase growth at all costs, how they use storytelling instead of constant marketing, and why sometimes saying "no" is the smartest business decision you can make.

Whether you manage a destination resort, a community ski hill, or you're just passionate about the business of skiing, there are a ton of ideas in this conversation that you can take back to your own mountain.

Let's head to Utah and find out why sometimes the best strategy... is simply not messing it up.

Get all 10 Actionable Insights from this episode at www.sellingsnow.com

Ok we had a great response last week to our compilation episode pulling together the best thoughts on building the ski area/community relationship as one of the most important pieces in running a successful ski area. This week, we’re looking at marketing and some of the more practical things ski areas have done to grow their business.

It’s not just about bigger ad budgets.

Its not about chasing viral videos.

It’s not even really about social media.

Instead, It’s all about following the same progression.

First, build a product that people genuinely want to talk about.

Then understand exactly who you're building it for.

Create experiences those people can't help but share.

Remove friction from the buying process.

And only then start thinking about campaigns and promotions.

So in this special episode, we've pulled together some of the very best marketing lessons from our first twenty episodes—practical, sometimes simple ideas you can apply at any ski area, whether you're a small local hill or a destination resort. There are so many, but to keep the episode manageable, we pulled out a few of our favourites.

Community. A community is defined as a social group of people who share common characteristics, interests, identities, or geographic locations.

Common Characteristics like a garage full of gear for every mountain-related sport, interests like a love for sliding fast down mountains together, identities like the casual nod when goggle tan game recognizes goggle tan game late into the Summer, and geographic locations like anywhere there is slope, snow and people wanting to slide down it.

Skiing at its very core is about community. It was started by communities and welcomes people from all over to come join their community for vacation. 

The ski experiences we all love were, at one time, created by and for a passionate group of people with shared interests, and the ski resorts over time that have flourished and been the most successful have been those that lean into supporting, promoting, encouraging, embracing and growing alongside that community.

I did a quick search, and the word community came up 168 times in the first 20 episodes of this series.

After twenty episodes, we’ve talked about snowmaking, marking, pricing, infrastructure and more, 

But when you really start digging into why some ski areas thrive for decades while others struggle, those things aren't usually the differentiators.

The differentiator is community.

Not the word community that gets tossed into every strategic plan and mission statement.

Actual community.

The relationship between a ski area and the people who live around it.

The people who work there.

Raise their kids there.

Volunteer there.

Argue about the lift line there.

And eventually defend that ski area when somebody threatens what makes it special.

Today, we're exploring that relationship through the eyes of operators from some of the most successful, unique, and community-minded ski areas we've featured on Selling Snow.

We'll hear perspectives ranging from destination resorts to community-owned ski hills, from nonprofit operations to independent family businesses.

But together they paint a pretty compelling picture of what community means in the ski industry.

Let's go ski an off the trail map run, as we talk community with some of the best in the business.

Have you ever experienced a nut-cracker lift? If you have you definitely have stories to tell about it. Today we’re heading into the heart of New Zealand’s Southern Alps to visit a super unique ski area that like most Club Fieldsin New Zealand is power by the nut cracker. Think big alpine terrain, very few people, minimal infrastructure and affordable big mountain skiing.

Forget high-speed lifts, luxury condos, and sprawling base villages. At Craigieburn Valey Ski Area,  skiers ride steep rope tows using Nutcracker, stay in a communal lodge where guests help cook and clean, and spend their days exploring some of the most challenging terrain in New Zealand.

Joining us today is Kurt Carter, General Manager of Craigieburn Valley. Kurt shares the fascinating history of New Zealand's club field model, explains why Craigieburn proudly operates as a not-for-profit ski club, gives us an inside look at a ski area where community often matters just as much as skiing, and poses the question, " Could this model ever work in North America?"

So let’s head out to the access tows for a conversation with Craigieburn General Manager Kurt Carter.

We pulled 12 Actionable Insights from this episode to help you up your own game. Find them all at www.sellingsnow.com

This episode takes us nearly all the way to the Southern Edge of the world. To a place many are surprised to hear has a commercial ski resort.  Tasmania, Australia. Yes, Tasmania has skiing and a ski area that not long ago was fighting for survival.

When Ben Mock and his partners purchased Ben Lomond Alpine Resort, the mountain had managed just 17 operating days the season before. Fast forward a few years, and they're now pushing past 100 operating days, investing heavily in snowmaking, growing revenue, rebuilding guest confidence, and helping reshape what skiing can look like in Tasmania.

But this isn't just a story about snowmaking. It's a story about patience, persistence, community buy-in, long-term thinking, and what happens when operators focus on delivering a reliable product before chasing the next shiny attraction.

We also talk about working inside a national park, rebuilding trust with guests, creating a year-round business, marketing experiences instead of products, and why one of the most memorable parts of the journey might be the road to get there.

So let’’s buckle up and drive up Jacob’s Ladder for a great conversation with Ben Mock.

We pulled 12 Actionable Insights from this episode. Find them all at www.sellingsnow.com

What happens when a ski resort can’t be reached by cars at all? Or when it decides not to compete with the biggest players in the industry?

This week on Selling Snow, we're heading to the highest ski resort in Australia

At Charlotte Pass, General Manager Lucy Blyton-Gray is proving that bigger isn't always better.

Accessible only by over-snow transport during winter, Charlotte Pass has turned what many would see as operational challenges into some of its greatest competitive advantages. Charlotte Pass has built its brand around something increasingly rare in modern skiing: no cars, no queues, and no crowds.

In this episode, Lucy shares how Charlotte Pass leverages nearly a century of history, transforms first-time visitors into lifelong guests, uses storytelling to bring its unique experience to life, and stays fiercely loyal to the families who have been returning generation after generation.

If you've ever wondered how a smaller ski area can stand out in the shadow of much larger competitors, this episode is packed with lessons you can apply at your own mountain.

Now let’s get on the over-snow transport and head up to Charlotte Pass for a chat with Lucy Blyton-Gray.

Get all 12 Actionable Insights from this episode at www.sellingsnow.com

Today we're heading north, back to BC, just west of Terrace, to a legendary powder paradise and the only co-op-owned ski area in North America.

A ski resort that had fallen on tough times. And a community—and even the former owners themselves—that rallied together to save it.

Today on Selling Snow, we’re chatting with Shames Mountain General Manager Christian Théberge for one of the most unique ski business stories in the industry.

We’ll hear how a small remote ski area transformed into one of the world’s most fascinating community ownership stories, why building community trust may be more important than building new lifts, and what ski operators can learn about sponsorship, leadership, transparency, and surviving tough seasons.

We’ll also hear how bake sales, pet rocks, and a community refusing to let their mountain disappear helped save a ski hill.

So let’s put on our gore tex powder bibs, and head up to Shames for a conversation with Christian Theberge.

We pulled 12 Actionable Insights from this episode. Get them all at www.sellingsnow.com

I am so excited about today’s episode. I’ve been hearing about this summer-only ski area near Yellowstone for years and have always been intrigued. Today, we head high above the tree line to one of the most unique ski operations around. The only summer-only ski area in North America, Beartooth Basin.

No hotels. No village. No snowmaking. No high-speed lifts. Just 500 feet of steep summer snow, two diesel-powered platter lifts, and a community of skiers who are absolutely obsessed with the place.

Our guest today is Justin Modroo, the General Manager of Beartooth Basin, a ski area that operates for only a few weeks each year, but has become one of the most legendary hidden gems in skiing.

In this conversation, Justin shares how Beartooth survives with a short summer season, why they intentionally cap skier numbers, how they built a cult-like following without traditional marketing, and why authenticity and community might matter more than luxury amenities in the future of skiing.

This episode is a reminder that sometimes the most important thing a ski area can sell isn’t convenience, size or amenities, it’s soul. Plain and simple fun. So let’s head up the Beartooth pass, get our costumes on, hit the mandatory drop in and ski every day like it’s closing day in our conversation with Justin Modroo from Beartooth Basin.

Get all 12 Actionable Insights from this episode at www.sellingsnow.com

Today, we’re heading down under to the Victorian Alps,  three hours outside of Melbourne, Australia to a fascinating ski resort model built on collaboration.

My guest today is Noel Landry, a Canadian-born ski patroller turned Olympic event operator turned ski resort GM, who now oversees one of Australia’s most collaborative and community-driven mountain operations.

In this episode, we dive into what Noel calls “running winter like a 121-day event,” and unpack how Mt Buller operates within a complex mix of private ownership, government-managed infrastructure, community stakeholders, and independent businesses, all while a ski area with some of the best advanced terrain in Australia.

We talk about:

There’s a ton of operational and marketing insight packed into this one.

So let’s head up to the village in the clouds, and in some creamy down under snow under the gum trees with Noel Landry of Mt. Buller.

We pulled 12 Actionable Insights from this episode that you can use to up your own game. Find all 12 at www.sellingsnow.com

Imagine a ski area that is a 90-minute drive from 20 million people. It sounds like a dream on the business side. But imagine, literally millions of those have never skied before, and there is a massive volume of competing entertainment options.

In this episode of Selling Snow, we’re heading back to the East Coast and the hills of New Jersey. Coming off one of their all-time best snow seasons (Yes, New Jersey beat out many iconic western ski areas for snow this year), we sit down with Evan Kovach, General Manager of Mountain Creek Resort, one of the highest-volume ski areas in North America, sitting just outside New York City and serving millions of potential guests.

And what’s fascinating about their model…

It’s built on the science of selling, introducing new skiers to the sport, having an epic terrain park scene, and being the alpine backyard for the New York metro area.

We get into how they:

Because if you want to grow your ski area in today’s market, you don’t just need more skiers…

You need a better system for creating them.

Now let’s head through the Lincoln tunnel and down I -80 for a chat with Evan Kovach at Mountain Creek Resort, New Jersey.

We pulled 12 Actionable Insights from this episode. You can find all of them at www.sellingsnow.com