A state-led push to promote winter sports in China ahead of the 2022 Olympics in Beijing will help outdoor brands maintain faster sales growth in the country than the overall sportswear market, according to the China head of German group Jack Wolfskin.
Undeterred by a lack of snow in most of China, public and private investment is piling into ski slopes. Beijing aims to open 1,000 ski resorts by 2030, almost double the number now.
China’s President Xi Jinping donned winter wear to inspect the progress of the Olympic skiing venue in Hebei province, close to Beijing, earlier this year. Real estate developer Dalian Wanda last month opened the world’s largest indoor ski resort in Harbin.