France displaced Bulgaria from the second place in the export of skis
Source：Sega newspaper
From：Taiwan Trade Center, Sofia
Update Time：2023/02/14
Austria is the EU's #1 exporter of winter sports equipment
Bulgaria dropped to third place in the EU in terms of exports of skis and snowboards. A year ago, our country was second in this ranking, but now it has been replaced by France, and the leader is Austria, according to the new Eurostat data.
The displacement of the second and third in the ranking is due to the greater growth of French exports. In fact, both Bulgaria and France have increased their exports and have an 11% share in sales abroad, but our direct competitor has produced and sold in other countries 648,000 items for winter sports, and we - 630,800. These data are for 2021, and the previous statistics - for 2020, showed respectively 564,700 pieces for Bulgaria and 551,200 for France.
Compared to 2020, Austria recorded a decrease of 5%, Bulgaria - an increase of 12%, and France recorded the largest increase - 18%.
Although registering a contraction, Austria remains the elusive export leader, holding a 35 percent share with just over 2 million pairs of skis and individual snowboards.
The biggest buyers of skis and snowboards produced in the EU are the USA, Canada and Norway.
A curious fact is that Austria and France are also major importers of skis and snowboards.
Austria the largest importer in the EU; China is the main non-EU source
In 2021 the largest importer from the EU both within the Community and outside the Community was Austria with 1/3 of all imports (1,420,200 pairs of skis and individual snowboards imported, or 33%). followed by France (823,400 items, 19%) and Germany (405,100 items, 9%).
As for non-EU imports, more than 2/5 of delivered pairs of skis and individual snowboards originated in China (329,800 items, or 42% of total non-EU ski and snowboard imports), followed by Ukraine (152,000), 19%) and Russia (69,400, 9%).
Made in Bulgaria
Bulgaria's excellent performance in this European ranking is due to one manufacturer - the "Amer Sports" factory in Chepelare, which produces skis from the famous brands Atomic and Salomon. It has existed since the 1970s, and in 2008 it was acquired by a foreign investor - the Finnish company Amer Sports.
The other Bulgarian producers are relatively new to the market.
Balkan Snowboards, for example, started in 2012 when three snowboarders decided to make boards that they themselves would like to ride. They produce limited series, the boards are made by hand. The models have Bulgarian names - such as Voevoda Pro, Partizan Pro, Balkan G and Samodiva.
Cloudnine is another one of our established companies. It started in 2014 when two engineers opened a workshop for skis and boards. The equipment is made to order using the "sandwich" technology.
Source: https://www.segabg.com/hot/category-economy/franciya-izmesti-bulgariya-vtoroto-myasto-po-iznos-na-ski