China's ski market experiences industrial bottleneck

China, currently the largest overall ski market in the world, is experiencing an industrial bottleneck in its ski industry. According to a goal set in the Winter Sports Development Plan (2016-2025), China aims to reach an industrial scale of 1 trillion RMB by 2025, which is a huge challenge given the current market size of less than 100 billion.

According to a 2016 white paper on China's ski industry, the country now has 646 ski resorts, which are visited by 11.33 million people annually. More than 30 percent of these resorts are located in northeastern China. Those located in the North, East and West of the country account for 24, 18 and 14 percent respectively.

The white paper notes that most of the Chinese people visiting ski resorts are experience-based skiers. However, the number of frequent participants - those who go skiing three to four times a year - is growing. One-off skiers accounted for 78 percent of the total number last year, down by 2 percent from 2015.

Ten percent of the populations of both Japan and France are ski enthusiasts, while the percentage of Chinese people who have ever skied is less than 1. This suggests a vast potential for development of the industry. However, 75 percent of Chinese ski resorts are only equipped with beginner ski tracks, with much room for improvement when it comes to facilities, service and security.

Insufficiently trained coaches is another factor hindering the development of the industry. Statistics show that at least half of ski instructors in China have not received higher education, and 44 percent of instructors have been teaching for less than five years.

Beijing, capital of China and northern Chinese city Zhangjiakou will host 2022 Winter Olympics, which has offered China a precious chance to promote winter sports and encourage more people to participate in ice and snow events.