One ski brand has a new mission to help get — and keep — women participating in the sport of skiing.
Blizzard-Tecnica just revamped its initiative with a mission to specifically design better ski products for women. The Women to Women (W2W) project is dedicated to designing equipment specifically for women and to “engage, empower, and educate” the women’s skiing community.
The Women to Women program officially began in 2015, with two focus groups (one in Europe and one in the U.S.). Since then, Blizzard has been working on ways it can grow the program. For example, in 2020, that consisted of Zoom calls with the brand’s female athlete and ambassador network.
In addition to its focus groups, Blizzard actually has a “test team” that skis all the products that Blizzard and its ambassadors work to develop. And this year, Blizzard has introduced a scholarship program for female athletes.
The first Women2Women Education Scholarship program just awarded over $15,000 in tuition and equipment to 18 women. Scholarship candidates can use the funds to become a certified guide or get their AIARE Level 1 or PSIA instructor certifications.
The project starts with “Blizzard ensuring women feel heard and seen throughout its brand,” it said — from the product development stage to the testing stage and, finally, the marketing stage. It also consists of various films, storytelling, and highlighting female athletes in the sport and the ski industry.
“It’s a unique and holistic program that starts with building better products, and ends with building lifelong communities,” Blizzard-Tecnica wrote.
Women2Women Scholarship Program
This year’s scholarship winners, awarded in January, consisted of 11 women from the U.S., five from Canada, one from Austria, and one from Germany. The scholarship program is open globally, and the application process for next year’s award will open on Dec. 1, 2021.
Learn more here or watch the catalyst for the project — Blizzard-Tecnica’s original W2W film series, which began back in 2017.
