"Ice-Snow Industry to Surpass Trillion Yuan with 'Ice-Snow+' Integration"

At the 2024 International Winter Sports (Beijing) Expo, the "2024 China Ice and Snow Industry Development Research Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") was officially released. The report indicates that the scale of China's ice and snow industry is expected to reach 1.0053 trillion yuan by 2025, showing a relatively rapid development momentum.

China Business News reporters noted that among these, ice and snow events, ice and snow tourism, and the manufacturing of ice and snow products all have broad development prospects. However, the report also points out that China's ice and snow industry still needs to overcome challenges such as strong seasonality and insufficient infrastructure. By developing diversified products, improving service quality, and strengthening international cooperation, the industry can further expand market space and enhance its competitiveness.

Rapid development of the ice and snow industry

The report shows that the scale of China's ice and snow industry has grown from 270 billion yuan in 2015 to 890 billion yuan in 2023, reaching 970 billion yuan in 2024. It is estimated that by 2025, the overall scale of China's ice and snow industry will reach 1.0053 trillion yuan.

Zhang Li, Co-President of Asia Data Group, said that this is first due to policy support. After the 2022 Winter Olympics, from the central government to local governments, there has been a series of policy support for the ice and snow industry. Second, it is the development of the industry itself. In recent years, the number of related enterprises registered in China has continued to grow. In 2019, about 1,191 new enterprises were added throughout the year, and by 2024, 2,001 new enterprises were added nationwide, with a total of about 30,000 ice and snow enterprises in the country. In addition, there is attention from capital. Data shows that in the past few years, as the number of ice and snow investment transactions has increased, the amount of single investment has also increased.

Looking at the ice and snow industry in detail, the report mentions that currently, China's independent ice and snow events are showing a vigorous development trend. Various events and activities are rich and diverse, covering multiple projects such as skiing, skating, ice hockey, and luge. They not only provide a platform for ice and snow sports enthusiasts to showcase their talents but also lay a solid foundation for the improvement of China's ice and snow sports level and the cultivation of winter Olympic talents.

In addition, in terms of ice and snow tourism, the "China Ice and Snow Tourism Development Report (2023)" released by the China Tourism Academy shows that by the 2024-2025 ice and snow season, it is expected that the number of people participating in China's ice and snow leisure tourism will reach 520 million, and the total revenue from China's ice and snow leisure tourism will reach 720 billion yuan.

It is worth noting that the popularity of ice and snow tourism has obviously spanned the whole year. Reporters learned from Wei Changren, the founder of Jinglv.com, that as early as August this year, brand merchants such as Wanda Hotels and Resorts, Club Med Resort, Vanke Songhua Lake Resort, and Cuiyun Mountain Tourism Resort started selling winter skiing packages on Feizhu. Taking Wanda Hotels and Resorts as an example, in just 8 days, the cumulative transaction amount of its snow season package products sold through Feizhu exceeded 180 million yuan, with the highest single product sales breaking 70,000 pieces.

In addition, in terms of the number of ice and snow venues nationwide, the report shows that in 2023, the number of domestic ice and snow venues continued to grow, with a total of 2,847 ice and snow sports venues nationwide, including 1,912 skating venues and 935 skiing venues. Compared with 2022, the number of ice and snow sports venues in 2023 increased by 16.11%, with skiing venues increasing by 6.74% and skating venues increasing by 21.32%.

The report also mentions that the development of China's ice and snow product manufacturing industry has a broad prospect. From the manufacturing of snowmaking and snow grooming equipment to the production of sportswear and equipment, to sports fitness, leisure and health, and skill training, there are many enterprises involved. Driven by both technological innovation and market demand, the ice and snow sports equipment manufacturing industry has achieved industrial upgrading and brand internationalization.Looking towards the future, China's ice and snow industry will face eight major development trends: First, the market size will continue to expand; second, consumer demand will tend to diversify; third, the ice and snow industry chain will continue to improve; fourth, the ice and snow industry will be continuously driven by technological innovation to promote transformation and upgrading; fifth, the ice and snow industry will gradually transform from regional competition to regional collaboration; sixth, "ice and snow +" will promote in-depth integration across industries; seventh, the ice and snow industry will pay more attention to sustainable development; eighth, the export of ice and snow equipment will become the norm.

Exploring the integration of "ice and snow +" across industries

As ice and snow sports evolve from competitive events to fashionable trends and a part of lifestyle, the ice and snow industry is facing unprecedented development opportunities. Under this opportunity, the integration of "ice and snow +" across industries is an important product.

Zhang Guihai, a professor at Harbin Sports University, mentioned that the concept of "ice and snow +" provides a combination of productivity elements with ice and snow as the main factor, bringing opportunities for the generation of intersecting industries and marginal effects in the future. "Last year, Harbin's popularity had a very typical 'ice and snow +', combining ice and snow with equestrian sports, forming a scene of horses stepping on flying snow, which showed an unexpected tourism appeal and tourism value. With the development of technology, the space and technical capabilities of 'ice and snow +' will be stronger, and there will be more future projects, so I am very confident in the industry of 'ice and snow +'."

Xu Wen, CEO of Zhangjiakou Genting Ski Park Management Group Co., Ltd., also mentioned that the integration of "ice and snow +" across industries will also be the development trend of the company. "Now, the ski resort is no longer just a paradise for skiers, it will become a venue for mountain activities, fashion activities, and social activities, so we have made bold explorations, including cooperation with the luxury goods industry, cosmetics industry, trendy brand industry, cultural tourism industry, and other industries, hoping to bring overlapping passenger flow to the ski resort."

Wang Bingyu, the world champion in curling, analyzed from the perspective of ice and snow sports and cultural education. She mentioned that the number of ice and snow sports venues is increasing exponentially, hoping that various clubs and ski resorts can open more to schools, develop some public welfare courses, or provide students with more opportunities to experience and contact ice and snow, so as to truly achieve the cultivation of ice and snow talents. In the future, when these talents grow up, they may integrate with ice and snow in any field.

Zhang Guihai said that "ice and snow +" is the direction of the development of the ice and snow industry, and it is the guarantee for the sustainable development of the ice and snow industry. The stable development of the ice and snow industry requires new elements, and the combination process of new elements is the "+" process.

"Ice and snow have sports functions, health functions, entertainment functions, and viewing functions. For example, the combination of metaverse technology and ice and snow is to combine the physical natural ice and snow with the virtual magical ice and snow, creating space for the ice and snow industry. To meet people's growing needs, the ice and snow industry must inject new vitality." Zhang Guihai said.