Vail Resorts CEO Touts 2 Million Epic Passes Sold

While the ski season's been a mixed bag thus far, Vail Resorts (purveyors of the Epic Pass), according to its CEO Kirsten Lynch, is doing just fine.

In a TV spot held by Squawk Box CNBC, Lynch provided an operations update on the ever-dominant resort conglomerate.

In the summer of 2021, Lynch succeeded Rob Katz as Vail Resorts' CEO, becoming the first woman in the company's history to hold the bigwig position. Previously, she served as the company's chief marketing officer.

Lynch highlighted two vital components of Vail Resorts' grand strategy in this interview with CNBC. For one, when asked about the company's early-season status, she responded, "We have over 2 million guests pre-committed in a season pass for this upcoming season across our 41 ski resorts."

"Pre-committed"—that's the operative phrase. In a presentation given to investors during spring 2023, Vail Resorts noted that "advanced commitment" is a key element of its business model.

To the layman: "advanced commitment" describes the sales of Vail's flagship product, the Epic Pass. Through these pre-season pass sales, Vail hedges against skiing's intrinsic uncertainty. The arrival of snow is never guaranteed at any given resort, but those Epic Pass sales are.

There's another hedge at play, too. Lynch points to Vail's vast resort portfolio—covering North America and Europe—as another selling point for the company. Like the aforementioned "advanced commitment" strategy, holding resorts across geographic zones protects against uncertainty and, according to Vail, "Creates financial stability for weather and macroeconomic changes."

I'm no MBA, but whether you dislike Vail or love them, it sounds like a winning game plan.

Related: Vermont Skier Proves You Can Have Fun In Any Conditions

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