By: Denis Piccolo
Small talk with Minoia Snowboard Store
Minoia is without a shadow of a doubt one of the leading snowboard stores in Italy. Can I ask you today what the Snowboarder is looking for?
In the past, we and the snowboard industries have pushed freestyle and park sessions only to realize that we were losing sight of the true nature of snowboarding and the interest of many riders, who because of age or difficulty performing tricks, no longer recognized themselves in the sport, and we went back to pushing freeride. Now the market situation is again a nice mix. The new rider approaching our world asks for an all mountain board. In recent years, the trend is very much dictated by the current year’s weather and climate. Freeride boards sell well when there is abundant snowfall and they have a more mature audience. While, the twin tip never goes out of fashion among kids, although the demand for fun-snowboards is growing finding positive feedback from customers of all age groups.
The reference board brand and more in demand for Freeride or instead for Freestyle? For freeride definitely Jones, instead for freestyle Lib Tech, Capita and Signal by our friend Dave Lee.
Are there any new products (board, bindings and boots) that you are particularly excited about? Without a shadow of a doubt, Step On Burton as it is reliable, works well, the customer remains fully satisfied after using it, and as a result, it also arouses interest in the friend who in turn comes by the store to buy it.
How do you select the products you decide to list for sale?
We like to be against the current and decide for ourselves what brands to include in the store. We keep asking ourselves what would a rider like to find in a ProShop? We do not stop searching, importing, and sometimes, even producing the product that does not exist in the market at that time. This, perhaps, is the secret of our success…To a rider you cannot lie about the product you propose. No less important are direct contact with schools and clients at resorts and being present at B2B Camps such as The Pill Base Camp.
What, on the other hand, are the latest trends on the technical clothing front? As far as “old” riders are concerned, Gore-Tex clothing is the most popular, but it is gaining popularity among “young” riders as well. Since the 1990s, after trying a Jamie Lynn jacket in the U.S., we imported and pushed the Gore with Sessions. Now those who performa more in the market are the Ak line and Volcom Gore to follow. I would say, however, that Arthur Longo’s Signature Series clearly reflects the trend of the moment.
Is there one Snowboard company in particular that you feel is working better lately than the others in terms of communication, product, and support? Bah…for communications I see a certain difficulty for the big players to reach out and chase the new generation and a fatigue that should give some agencies and distributors pause for thought for the future in promoting their brands. For years we have found ourselves as a store pushing much harder than those who should be supporting us. For medium- and small-scale factories, there is not much to do except sling almost exclusively at Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. For product innovation and customer support, I would say the Capita, Union, Nidecker, Jones, and Burton brands are working well.
You are a Pro Shop with very high professionalism, what is the difference for a rider to buy a product in a physical store like yours or just online, what is the added value?
It is a question I have always asked myself every morning before I cross the store threshold…Then when I walk in and smell the wax from the lab, the rider having a coffee with our staff, the passion of Massimo, Beppe, Dany and all the other staff in explaining the product combined with the choice of hundreds of brands at the best price in the market I understand why after so many years we are still among the market leaders. The rider won’t forgive you if you’re not a rider yourself, and he can tell from a mile away. Max and I leave in our vans on Saturday night after the shop closes to be on the slopes at the opening: as long as there is passion, MinoiaBoardCo will exist.
Physical stores often enjoy their own community, tell me about yours?
We have connections from the mountains (snowboard) to the sea (kite and wing) via lakes (wake) to the city (skate). All of this is wonderful! For the snow department I have to thank all our riders, all our Team with Ernesto Della Torre in primis, our Local Heroes who follow us everywhere and our partners who make all this possible: the schools The Garden in Madonna di Campiglio and Nsa at Maniva, the Mtd crew that organizes fantastic trips in the Alps and Orobik with its park. They are all great guys!