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Swiss ski core manufacturer Hess to close

justplanesteve

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Several factors have made their business non-viable; the Euro Swiss franc exchange rate, a 62% increase in the cost of electricity and a 15% increase in the cost of logs. They are currently the only supplier of RCV cores.

I get that.
Fundamentally the costs are immutable yet they were not able to pass them on.
IOW, their buyers said "we won't pay any more for your cores even if it means we have no new supply for at least 12 months"

Perhaps customers were foresightful enough to buy in a years supply of blanks at legacy prices?
Are they betting someone else will quickly step in without a price increase for future? Do they plan to stop making high end skis? Or are they thinking long range enough to envision evolution to a different core material?

Based on forest resources and hydro power, it does seem like Canada or the PNW would be a good place to set up a core business?

smt
 

David Chaus

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Problem is, wherever the cores are made, the shipping costs to where the ski companies are located. The prices for higher end skis will go even higher.

If high quality cores can be produced in the PNW, do you envision Stockli or another company relocating to Seattle? Even a ski company headquartered near Seattle, K2, produces most of their skis in China.
 

cantunamunch

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Problem is, wherever the cores are made, the shipping costs to where the ski companies are located.

Eh, adaptability is also a game - as in not waiting for a container on a slow-steaming ship but throwing small numbers (30? 100? 200?) cores in a panel truck and delivering them overnight.


The prices for higher end skis will go even higher.

Sure, but you're still thinking of a cost hurdle to be overcome by major brands. That can be done. I mean Ogasaka used Canadian maple cores for a very long time.

You're not thinking of a quality hurdle to be overcome by small-volume labels, startups and boutique makers. In other words, in order to go upmarket with product, small labels would need to set up core fabrication first - comparable to mid-volume makers like the Lusti video shown above.

If high quality cores can be produced in the PNW, do you envision Stockli or another company relocating to Seattle? Even a ski company headquartered near Seattle, K2, produces most of their skis in China.

Again, never mind major market brands. They can set up their own workshops just like Fischer did, if the bean counters can be persuaded.

The real potential would be in reforming PNW/BC boutique, indie and small brand makers with access to these cores. Imagine if Prior or Typhoon or ON3P did Blossom-like all-mountain and race skis...
 
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Swiss Toni

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BTW Paulownia are kinda cool fast growing wonder woods in their own right.

Balsa and paulownia cores seem to be falling out of favor. Balsa mainly comes from Ecuador, there seems to a problem with FSC certification and paulownia mainly comes from China so there are supply chain issues. The current trend seems to be to use lighter grades of poplar.

Perhaps customers were foresightful enough to buy in a years supply of blanks at legacy prices?

I doubt it, these days skis are largely made to order, most of them are made between April and November, the manufacturers would also have to find somewhere to store them.

Are they betting someone else will quickly step in without a price increase for future?

The Slovenian manufacturers will probably be able to make up the shortfall for glued up board cores, one of them is owned by Isosport who are a major manufacturer of ski components, but I doubt that anyone would have the capacity to make the RCV cores.

Do they plan to stop making high end skis? Or are they thinking long range enough to envision evolution to a different core material?

High end skis will still be made but they might not have the same type of core has they have had until now. The last attempt at using an alternative core material (foam) in mid to high-end skis didn’t end well.

Based on forest resources and hydro power, it does seem like Canada or the PNW would be a good place to set up a core business?

Making ski cores for European ski manufacturers outside Europe is a non-starter, as part of their attempts to ‘green’ themselves the ski manufacturers are trying to source as many components as possible within Europe. Some ski cores are made in very small quantities, I doubt that a Canadian or any other North American plywood manufacturer would be prepared to make a pallet of ash / okoume / poplar cores for a few WC skis.
 
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Swiss Toni

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According to Hess, their cores are used by all the major manufacturers except Fischer and K2, who have their own core-making facilities. Many of the smaller, high-end European manufacturers such as Blossom, Van Deer and Stöckli also use them. Elan and Sporten make some of their cores in-house, presumably because they are located in former Eastern Bloc countries and couldn’t afford to buy them from the West. Ficher’s factory in the Ukraine was originally set up to make skis for the Soviet Union, which is presumably the reason why it has its own core-making facility.
 

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