Kristin Sinnott and Kara Williard caught up with Kjerstin Klein, co-owner of Willi’s Ski and Board. They dove into Kjerstin’s adventurous background as a model and sponsored snowboarder (among several other amazing things); and what it looked like for Kjerstin and her husband Greg to take on Willi’s and maintain it as a family-owned ski shop. Kjerstin explains how to successfully jump into a family business; techniques for how to stay innovative; what it means to truly grow the sport; why ski shops are “conduits” within the ecosystem that is the ski industry; and we learn a lot about the Winter Divas program, a women’s focus group that Kjerstin founded to grow women’s presence and leadership in the industry, plus a whole bunch more.
TOPICS & TIMES:
- Kjerstin’s Background (4:18)
- Being a Model & Sponsored Snowboarder (9:31)
- Jumping into a family business (13:12)
- Staying Innovative (19:01)
- Advice for family-run small businesses (21:50)
- Ski shops as conduits (23:19)
- Families that ski together stay together (26:55)
- Women-specific gear taking shape (33:07)
- Winter Divas (49:40)
- Specialty Retail (1:01:40)
- Skiing Meets Our Basic Needs (1:04:54)
RELATED LINKS:
- Ep. Sponsor + Exclusive Offer: OpenSnow.com/BLISTER
- Blister Recommended Shop: Willi’s Ski and Board
- Blister Summit Panel Video: Women in the Ski Industry
- Kjerstin’s Music Video Appearance
- Ep.223: Blizzard-Tecnica’s Women2Women Program with Leslie Baker-Brown
- Ep.167: Willi’s Ski and Snowboard Shops
- Blister Summit 2023 Registration