Justin Downes, President of Axis Leisure Management, discussed the growth and potential of winter sports in China, driven by government initiatives and a genuine love for winter sports. This trend is expected to benefit various sectors, including tourism, retail, food and beverage, and other experiences. With 365 days of potential recreation, winter sports can coexist with summer activities, providing unique experiences for both northern and southern Chinese populations.
00:00Well, Justin Downs is the president of Axis Leisure Management.
00:05I've been in China now for 18 years, so I came in at the advent of what I think was the start of the ski industry in China.
00:13And I've seen so many things, the government influence and the Olympic Games, all of these great things.
00:21But the snow breaks that the Chinese government is bringing in to encourage Chinese kids to get into winter sport is a very significant thing.
00:31So I was just the World Cup that just was held place in Zhangjiokou in north of Beijing this past week.
00:38Basically, the people that were there, the families that were embracing the event, the pride, the curiosity, there's a genuine love for winter sport.
00:48So I think there's so much happening around winter sport at the moment that is really driving Chinese people into getting involved.
00:57What's the catch here, though? I mean, are there any drawbacks?
01:00I mean, could popular summer destinations fall off as people spend more of their vacation budget on their winter breaks?
01:08No, I mean, I don't think so. I mean, look, it's 365 days of the year of potential potential recreation.
01:16Right. So, you know, you've got 700 million people living in the southern China and 700 million people living northern China.
01:24They're all looking for unique and different experiences.
01:26So the fact that is there's a fascination for of winter sport in general, where there is snow, there is fascination.
01:34So people are generally driven toward these these interesting parts of northern China.
01:39We're talking about local economies here, winter sports, tourism.
01:44Can you see other sectors benefiting from this push to like retail?
01:49Oh, of course. You know, people are not naturally if people are going to want to get involved in winter sport, they're going to want to buy winter apparel.
01:56They're going to want to buy winter shoes, you know, sunglasses, you know, everything.
02:02Everything about retail is going to evolve, even even food and beverage and other types of experiences, cars, all of this type of stuff.
02:12Everything is going to benefit from the from the growth of winter sport.
02:15belly, folks.
02:32You know, big 하는 migration, So when they come to the, I think it is a idea for you to get warm water,ьer and whiskey.
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