Industry News
Coalition Snow, a ski and snowboard brand operated and designed by women, for women, has just opened its first retail location in Truckee, CA. Coalition Snow was founded by Jen Gurecki in 2013 to show women and young girls that they have a place in the sports industry and can shred the snow just as much as guys can. Gurecki described the brand as creating skis for “women who know that doing anything ‘like a girl’ isn’t an insult“, and it took off when their Kickstarter campaign raked in over $30K in 2015.
The “Coalition Clubhouse” celebrated its grand opening in Truckee on November 14, 2019. Having a physical storefront represents a huge step forward for an independent brand because it is extremely difficult for ski retailers to break into the market in local businesses and communities when stores are already committed to well-known companies that bring in loyal customers. It can also be difficult for consumers to commit to an expensive investment into skis or snowboards when they are only viewable online, so having their own physical location will hopefully allow this female-forward company to break through the snow ceiling.
As a women-centered brand, Coalition Snow is excited to offer a snow retail experience like no other. They will of course mainly feature their high-performance and award-winning skis and snowboards designed specifically with women in mind available both to buy and rent, but they will also be offering athletic clothing, accessories, feminist propaganda, and jewelry supplied by their partner charity, Zawadisha, that provides funds to small communities in rural Kenya.
In addition, Coalition Snow believes that creating an experience and community for their customers is the key to creating a loyal fanbase to grow their business, so they will also be offering yoga classes and other special events to celebrate female empowerment and feminism in a male-dominated industry. For example, one of their more unique offerings is “cry pillow parties”, providing a free and non-judgemental space for girls and guys to cry it out together while drinking wine to promote healthy expression of emotions.
If you’re interested in supporting an independent brand and celebrating feminism while shredding the patriarchy then be sure to check out the Coalition Clubhouse!
…including feminist propaganda? Who’s propaganda? Define feminist. As it sits right now, feminists are turning out to be the most intolerant, loud, and uneducated group of women I’ve seen in some time. They don’t even know how under educated they are to know they’re undereducated. I’ve watched them become violent, overbearing, and judgmental – exactly opposite of what the feminist movement was in the past. The word feminist has been repurposed to activate young women to hate on young men – particularly those of a certain race. How sad that this sport has to take a political stand rather than simply embrace a sport that needed to be more tailored for women’s physical abilities so that we can better enjoy snow sports because the equipment is built for us.
Yeah, as an active, female, snow sport enthusiast, I will not embrace this brand until feminist propaganda is removed permanently – until then, I will continue to speak out.