For most of the 1970’s, 80’s and into the 90’s, Rossignol was king of the roost, the most recognized trademark in a market crammed with brands that did not survive this epoch. They built a race department that was the envy of all, with stars like Alberto Tomba and what seemed like every significant female racer in the world. Eventually, maintaining their race stable became too expensive, other companies innovated while they held eroding ground and Quicksilver’s brief flirtation with ownership did neither brand any favors. Now Rossignol’s star is ascending again.
For brands that make technical gear like skis, a successful renaissance is always led by product. A couple of years ago, Rossi shored up the core of their All-Mountain offering with the introduction of the Experience series, headlined by the terrific E98 and E88. Last season [2013] they re-staked their claim to Carving excellence with the HP Pursuit. This year they’ve knocked the cover off the ball with the new Super 7, Squad 7 and Soul 7. It’s rare for skis this forgiving to also deliver OMG performance, but Rossi has found a fresh way to deliver the stability only length provides without making a Big Mountain ski feel big when flipping edge to edge. With the Super 7, Rossignol has restored the word’ “playful” to the Powder ski lexicon, a nearly forgotten attribute among these tanker-sized skis.
During their brief tenure in the wilderness, Rossignol gave up ground to arch rivals (in the US) K2 and Völkl in the women’s market. They stand to recover substantial territory if their new 7 series seduces as many women as we expect it to. The names Sassy, Saffron, Savory and Star sound like second-generation Spice Girls, but that shouldn’t deter women for even a second. All these models need to succeed is snow.