Ski industry bosses in France have revealed the financial impact that the prolonged closure of ski lifts is having on businesses.
According to reports from the Domaines Skiables de France (DSF) ski lift operators will miss out on at least €1 billion of business this season.
But the impact extends far beyond the lift systems. Popular après-ski destination La Folie Douce, which has restaurants and bars in eight mountain locations across France, hasn’t been able to welcome a single visitor since last March.
“The losses are almost 100 per cent” said general manager Artur Reversade, according to website challenges.fr.
It is a similar scenario for equipment rental shops. Sports 2000, a chain with ski shops in multiple resorts, reports business is down 90 per cent year on year.
Claude Jay, mayor of the Les Belleville which includes major resorts Saint Martin de Belleville, Les Menuires and Val Thorens, estimates that winter tourism “sustains between 350 and 400 shops and service providers” and generates “12,000 jobs,” in his region alone.
Resorts are still waiting to hear if lifts will be allowed to start turning at all this season: last week, the ban on their closure was extended until March.