Everything You Need To Know About Getting Your First Sponsor

The joke I make about Lesh a lot to my friends who know who he is, is that he made his own company so that he could go pro.

I don't know, or even care if this is true anymore. Anyone who wants to hate on lesh or fd should at least have invested their entire fucking life into the sport.

Threads to read the op, but I really don't feel the need to ever try and get a sponsorship because I like skiing with homies, for fun.
 
This is a awesome thread David and a great post and you talked about what skiing all comes down too, the fun of it and the joy of being on a mountain with two planks strapped to your feet and living the life of a ski bum or just a ski enthusiast this is great and very informative!
 
This is a awesome thread David and a great post and you talked about what skiing all comes down too, the fun of it and the joy of being on a mountain with two planks strapped to your feet and living the life of a ski bum or just a ski enthusiast this is great and very informative!
 
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Obviously, making it big in the industry isn't easy, but I think the most important thing we can do is keep the stoke up for kids who want skiing to be their lives.

The skiers who we admire most are those who were told they'd never make it. Torin started out filming at Snowmass with his mom and sending the edits to anyone who would take them. Goepper grew up in Indiana and worked his ass off just to afford to ski.

I'm not trying to say that anyone who tries to get sponsored will, but instead, anyone who wants to get sponsored should give it their all. We've done a few interviews, and people are always surprised to learn just how difficult it is to earn sponsorships. Despite the difficulty, I always make sure to encourage anyone to chase their dreams, as cliche as it sounds, because there are definitely worst things to spend time and money doing.
 
10/10 quality read, that was real talk. I, too, second the notion to make a thread of the terrible submissions sent to Virtika.

Also I'm curious about what to know about getting into the business side of the ski industry.
 
13226506:Virtika said:
We're one step ahead of you. We've been saving some of the more funny sponsorship requests we've gotten recently and we'll post them to a forum in the next few weeks. We're just trying to decide whether it's too mean or not...
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I 100% support this!

That is unless my sponsor me video get's posted in the bad video thread in which case I demand swift action on the part of mods to delete it, and ban all those responsible for such a travesty.
 
I'm going to try to come off not as some asshole bragging about all the free shit I get, but honestly this sounds pretty spot on for a generic park skier, my experience as more of a "big mountain" skier ( as big mountain as you can get in the east), has been pretty different.

Me and my friends have mostly done our thing and let sponsors come to us. Which I think tends to work out better because then you know they want you on the team and rocking their gear and have actually bothered to hunt you down rather than you just being some kid who sent them a video asking for free stuff.

I also think its a good idea to start small, don't just go full out and ask for skis and shit. From working with smaller companies you also get to know people in the industry who can hook you up with more gear as you become a bigger name and a better skier. My first sponsor was actually a media and apparel company, and from there I got hooked up with some helmets through a rep that liked our videos. This year I got connected with a local rep who hooked my up with skis and outerwear. Right now I've been talking with another rep for awhile about the only sponsorship I have actually hunted down, which has been for ski boots as I found cracks in mine and have no money to buy new ones.

This is more for after you are sponsored, but also remember that they are in no way obligated to give you anything, so don't feel entitled to anything at all. They are hooking you up with stuff so that you will represent them and hopefully provide them more business, or at least get them more recognition. So make sure to represent them in positive light or you probably won't be back on the team next year.
 
This is one of the best write-ups I've seen here in a while. Well-written, informative, and straight up honest. Thanks for posting this.
 
This is one of the best write-ups I've seen here in a while. Well-written, informative, and straight up honest. Thanks for posting this.
 
Wow, thanks so much this helped a lot. Now I can see it a lot more, step by step to where/how I want to be. But at my ski resort the Texan family that leaves fries are Australians.
 
13226506:Virtika said:
We're one step ahead of you. We've been saving some of the more funny sponsorship requests we've gotten recently and we'll post them to a forum in the next few weeks. We're just trying to decide whether it's too mean or not...
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Some of the worst videos and emails will be helpful for us to see what not to do surely? ;)
 
This is why I love the internet. This is my chance to share my sponsor-me video with a owner of a brand I really admire and think I could fit well into.

please check out my video Mr. Lesh I put a lot of blood,sweat and tears into making this.

Thanks for your time
 
Great read, and this is definitely a roadmap for the dudes out there.

However, I'd be curious to read an account from some of the successful ladies out there, because I think things might be a bit different.
 
amazing post.

i feel a point that he could have emphasized is :

get in shape.

skiing is dangerous, and no one wants to sponsor someone who's injured.

if you wanna get really good at skiing you need to be able to take the hits.

hit the gym / bike whatever suits you but skiing is a sport and putting in that extra effort will pay off whatever you decide to do with your skiing.

i saw so many really good kids who got injured too many times and couldnt pursue their promising carreer.
 
Thank you Lesh, this helps me realize I should probably consider a job that isn't a pro skier and I should get something that'll make me money and a good living and I can just live where I can and ski with all the kids who will actually go pro and just have fun.

I may have a parent high in the industry but that won't get me to the x games or even dew tour. I'm now just hyped to ski.
 
Most surprised by the fact that anyone, let alone 15-20 people per day hits up the Virtika "brand" for sponsorship.
 
This I'm sure is a great bit of advice for someone trying to "make it" in the industry for the long run. I have no experience with the professional side of sponsorship so I will not try to criticize what you've written! I will however say a lot of this is a bit exaggerated for the non-pro path skier. I sought out sponsorship from a young age because I wanted the raddest ski gear, but didn't have the money or parental support to help me out. I went into my local shop as much as I possibly could. Pre season I would be there 2-5 times a week, talking to all the employees and trying to learn something about the ski world. I became connected to the local college (Ohio State) ski team via newschoolers and facebook. When the season started I made sure to talk to all everyone on the mountain including park crew and lifties. The ski shop initially saw me as a kid who may not have the best skills, but was resourceful and talked to a lot of the local community. They offered me a spot on their "team" which basically meant they gave me a 40% discount. I was so stoked and started telling everyone to shop at AsbCo. The ski shop was stoked on my stoke and introduced me to the people at the local resort and a few different reps. I got hooked up when I was 13 purely because of my stoke for the sport and ability to sell a product. Reps in the area can sponsor kids which is a great way to become a part of a company without actually having to contact the corporate office.

I am now in college and will forever have those connections and hookups I got when I was 13. Not every kid who sends you those letters really wants or thinks they'll be pro skiers. A lot of those kids just don't know how to go about becoming more involved in an industry.

SPARKNOTES: You don't have to be super good to be "sponsored". Just know how to network and be as involved with the industry as you possibly can.
 
This thread should be permanently pinned in Ski Gabber.

Awesome stuff Lesh. Every Team Manager thanks you for writing this. haha
 
13227409:BOONCH said:
Most surprised by the fact that anyone, let alone 15-20 people per day hits up the Virtika "brand" for sponsorship.
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They just want to be in the next "Friday" video!

Probably the best first step is to work for a local ski shop. You get to meet sales reps from many brands, and if you're actually good they might score you an opportunity to work for their brand.
 
Awesome thread Lesh...

The idea of being marketable is something that so many people don't understand...

There is a huge attitude towards ability... I work in action sports (particularly Mountain biking) as a professional cinematographer... I am a North American brand ambassador for a large bike brand... and between both make a good living...

I've been in situations where a kid will show up and ride everything twice as good if not better than myself, proceed to let me know how hard he just rode everything and make the point he should have my contracts... When in reality that attitude is exactly the problem... People's mindset on how the industry and sponsorship works is so skewed... In the end if your a competition athlete, doing well at the top level and have immense ability, great. But if that is all you have to offer your longevity in whatever industry your in will be cut short and your impact will be minimal at best... Athletes are marketing tools and just being good on skis or on a bike or whatever does not sell a product...

Being an athlete is such a multifaceted career and it needs to be known that if your not valuable in a variety of ways than your not going to make a living as an athlete...
 
13227999:jasperwesselman said:
Awesome thread Lesh...

The idea of being marketable is something that so many people don't understand...

There is a huge attitude towards ability... I work in action sports (particularly Mountain biking) as a professional cinematographer... I am a North American brand ambassador for a large bike brand... and between both make a good living...

I've been in situations where a kid will show up and ride everything twice as good if not better than myself, proceed to let me know how hard he just rode everything and make the point he should have my contracts... When in reality that attitude is exactly the problem... People's mindset on how the industry and sponsorship works is so skewed... In the end if your a competition athlete, doing well at the top level and have immense ability, great. But if that is all you have to offer your longevity in whatever industry your in will be cut short and your impact will be minimal at best... Athletes are marketing tools and just being good on skis or on a bike or whatever does not sell a product...

Being an athlete is such a multifaceted career and it needs to be known that if your not valuable in a variety of ways than your not going to make a living as an athlete...
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Exactly, the sponsor needs to be confident that you'll produce a return on their investment. Although it would be sick, companies don't pour their money into teams for the good of the sport, they do it to sell product. As consumers, we have the ability to ask companies to step up their support of skiing, and I think that needs to be a bigger point moving forward.
 
DO EVERYTHING MENTIONED because it's fun as hell!

Who cares if you get free crap, $, fame, super model girl friend and a Laborari?

I certainly have had a life of skiing and ski culture that has fiscally added up to free goggles/gloves here and there. At the same time I've rarely had a day I didn't enjoy the hell out of!

If I'm shooting a feature and I get bored...moving on son!

...at the same time there is the thought that if you're shooting you have some back-country priority to lines. I think it should be quite the opposite, don't make enthusiasts wait it out while you're monkeying around potentially causing hazards for everyone. GO DEEP

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This was a very good article. People and myself included need to realize that the professional ski industry is so small and the benefits are so slim. We need to just ski because we love it and stop worrying about being the best. People should just have fun and do it as one positive group of people. We all have one desire for the industry and that is for it to grow and advance, this won't happen if we are all being douches and not helping out those younger than us to get better.
 
Congratulations Lesh, you just made it a little bit harder for you and every other TM to weed out the real-deals from the fakers.

Seriously though, entertaining and informative writing.
 
13227872:williams said:
This thread should be permanently pinned in Ski Gabber.

Awesome stuff Lesh. Every Team Manager thanks you for writing this. haha
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I'm having a really difficult time seeing how less applications helps any team. Sure, it's less work but Integral gets a ton of applications and I'm always stoked to look at each of them. This whole thread is destructive to kids trying to get into the industry, the very skiers who make up the industry's future. I hope the thread does;t get sticky'd.
 
Lesh this is a good read but Im still seeing kids getting big sponsors and media and can hardly spin an unatty 3. Theres one kid whos quite young and popular but wont say...
 
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