When passionate skier Steve Kopitz realized his dream of embarking on a second career on the retail side, pure chance dropped an ideal website address into his lap and his love for the sport led to his own chance discovery of a tool ideally suited for marketing, merchandising and sales.

For years, sales associates at the Don Thomas Sporthaus in Birmingham, Mich., had been invited to an annual “Test Fest” to familiarize themselves with the latest skis and snowboards. But it was in 2007, two years after Kopitz had purchased parent company Summit Sports, that he stood with vice president of operations Andy Schepper watching the sales associates ski down the slopes and observed, “Why are we not sitting at the bottom of this hill and videotaping this?”

Those tapes, and accompanying interviews with the testers, were turned into hundreds of product reviews on skis.com and via a kiosk in that Don Thomas Sporthaus location.

The results have been remarkable. Strong sales at the 7,500-sq.-ft. store have been eclipsed by the e-commerce volume at skis.com, despite the fact that it is one of the best-known destination stores for skiers and snowboarders in the Midwest. It is famous for its broad assortment of skis, snowboards, accessories and apparel and an “unsurpassed” commitment to customer service and satisfaction.

Kopitz also owns four other multi-category stores offering ski, snowboard and hockey equipment, inline skates, kayak and water sports, along with three stores positioned as hockey pro shops under the Summit Sports banner. The company is headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

The “Test Fest” coincides with the Ski Industry Association (SIA) show each January. Kopitz, Schepper and store associates review all the products being presented at the event, then determine which should be tested. (Products not being exhibited at the show may also be added to the list for testing.)

“We are expanding our testing and product reviews as we find the need and the customer demand,” Schepper says. “The first 350 videos last year were product-specific tests, and this year … we are up to 800 reviews. We also had twice as many testers this year, with 20 people testing products for two days.”

“Not all of Summit Sports’ associates are expert skiers, Schepper says. “We bring skiers of different levels. We wouldn’t use an expert skier to test intermediate level skis because they wouldn’t use them in the same way. There is very little product in skiing and snowboarding that we don’t sell, so we do try to cover as many skis and snowboards as possible.”

Customer assistance
The goal of the product reviews is not so much to endorse a specific set of skis, but to explain who would benefit from a particular ski or snowboard, Schepper says.

For an intermediate skier, “the review will talk about how a set of skis hold an edge in icy conditions or point out that certain skis are good for intermediate conditions in the East, where snow tends to be icy, and point out that a different ski would be more appropriate for waist-deep powder out West,” he says.

The product reviews are “one of a couple of tools we are using to create that in-store shopping experience” online, Schepper says. “As we replicate that experience, our sales are growing exponentially.” This is no small venture, however. “It’s expensive to house and transport our associates and videotape the reviews,” he says. “We were nervous about whether it would pay off, but we are seeing exponential growth, using the before-and-after scenario of the tests.”

The direct effect of these product reviews on sales for the bricks-and-mortar Don Thomas Sporthaus is more difficult to measure, but he says they are having a positive impact on store traffic and sales.

“Customers definitely like it, and they like being able to use the kiosk in the store,” Schepper says. “They can compare features with three or four skis, and they like the idea of buying skis from someone who has used them — which is why we doubled our testers and the number of reviews this year.”

Looking ahead, the company will be adding kiosks to two other stores that generate strong ski and snowboard sales.

Passionate skiers on staff
Additional benefits from the product reviews come in the form of having a knowledgeable sales staff that has first-hand experience with the equipment they sell.

“Our ski staff is very passionate about skiing,” Schepper says. “We pride ourselves that we have the premier ski shop in the Midwest with specialized services like custom boot-fitting.” says Schepper. Another potential benefit is reduced staff turnover.

“We are getting good people and keeping them,” he says. “We do require that associates be proficient in skiing and snowboarding, but we think of the ‘Test Fest’ as a perk. It’s voluntary and it’s an honor.”

Despite some technical difficulties on the slopes — “video cameras don’t like the cold, and tents do get blown over” — Schepper says he “would like to have as many videos of as many products as possible. My goal this year is to have an average of three videos for each of the skis and snowboards we offer.”