Client: Gamon & Partner Unternehmensberatung
Year:2009

Montenius Consult was commissioned to develop a location analysis for the Blue Vital Hotel, a four-star hotel in the Tyrolian village of Söll. The analysis included an evaluation of the supply and demand situation in Söll and the surrounding tourism regions of Wilder Kaiser as well as a study of the hotel market in Tyrolia.

In the course of this project planning concepts for the ski areas of the Harz Mountains have been developed. They were based on the evaluation of the snowmaking potential with SnowPlan as well as on a sound analysis of the terrain potential that has been carried out with the aid of a Geographical Information System. Measures in the fields of snowmaking, infrastructure, services and marketing were defined. The identification of potential ecological conflicts as well as an analysis of the market potential and possible target groups for new offers also belonged to the scope of this project that has been supported by the Ministry of Economic Affairs of the state of Lower Saxony.

Development of possible offers during wintertime (alpine skiing, snowboarding, tobogganing, tubing, snowshoeing, ice-skating, snow play area etc.) for the Panorama-Park Sauerland, a theme park on the ridge of the Rothaargebirge currently opened in summer only. The aim was to extend the park’s season. In the first stage the snowmaking potential was evaluated with the aid of SnowPlan. Moreover, a break-even-analysis taking into account the respective investments, operational and financing costs has been performed. The study also included recommendations concerning pricing, the services to be offered and a draft version of a marketing concept. As a result the feasibility was judged critically as the operators of the Panorama Park lacked specific know-how in the winter sports business. 

A feasibility study for an indoor ski slope in the Harz Mountains: The project included a detailed survey among existing indoor ski facilities and a market and competition analysis in the area surrounding the potential location. Visitor forecasts for different scenarios were carried out and served as a basis for a projection of operational costs and possible revenues. The project turned out to be not feasible. Alternative strategies for developing winter sports tourism at Hahnenklee were proposed.

Based on the results of the area’s regional development concept, measures for the improvement of the services in the central ski area of the Sauerland were developed. These included recommendations for snowmaking systems, lift and trail quality, network, general services, catering, accommodation, traffic guidance systems, ski rental, marketing, sales and quality management. For the Ministry of Economic Affairs, SME’s, Energy and Transport the findings were a basis for the allocation of subsidies for projects that improved the quality of the ski areas in the Sauerland. The aim was to establish the Sauerland as the leading ski area in Germany's low mountain ranges until 2006. Until the season of 2005/06 visitor numbers in the regions ski areas had already climbed from 300,000 to 1,000,000.

The Tourist Board of the Sauerland region, the Tourist Authority of North-Rhine-Westphalia and the West-German Skiing Association commissioned a detailed study of the winter sports infrastructure including a strength-weakness analysis, a demand analysis, a market potential study and an analysis of the economic impact of the ski tourism. Based on the findings, a development concept for the area's winter sports options and recommendations for future measures were developed. The project was subsidised by the Economic Ministery of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Planning of a snowmaking system for the Postwiesen ski area Winterberg-Neuastenberg with SnowPlan.

Due to a special climate situation it was important to determine the capacity of the snowmaking system exactly. Furthermore, the snowmaking coverage was aligned with the existing lift capacity which reduced the necessary investments considerably.

Taking economic and regional aspects into account, it was proved that the project was economically viable. Afterwards the Postwiesen ski area successfully applied for government subsidies.

The installation of the snowmaking system in combination with a new electronic ticket system and a new grooming machine (total investment 1.8 million Euros) brought tremendous results: Whereas the 10-year average of operating days had decreased from 71 (1979-1988) to 32 days (1989-1998) before the installation, it increased to more than 90 days afterwards. Average daily visits increased from 250 to 625 and the turnover was increased by 800%.