Compagnie des Alpes

Environmental & Social Information • Feb 22, 2017

THE TURKISH SKI FEDERATION AND COMPAGNIE DES ALPES SIGN A CONTRACT FOR THE ASSESSMENT OF TURKEY'S "SKI" POTENTIAL AND THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE MOST PROMISING SITES

Paris, 22 February 2017 – The Turkish Ski Federation (TKF) and Compagnie des Alpes, through its subsidiary CDA Management, today signed in Istanbul a contract for the identification of the most promising sites for the development of international standard ski resorts in Turkey.

THE CONTRACT CONFIRMS CDA'S STRENGTHS

The signing comes at the end of a call to tender organised by the TKF with several frontranking mountain master planning companies. CDA won the call to tender by highlighting its strengths and major points of differentiation:

• An international team comprising CDA's best experts and a number of Turkish and foreign specialists, including Cenk Demiroglu (a researcher specialising in environmental and snow issues in the Turkish mountains) and Laurent Vanat (a Swiss expert of the ski industry and its drivers). CDA will be assisted in this large-scale survey work by the Geode engineering office.
• A clear and demanding working method, refusing standardisation and placing great importance on realities on the field, the effects of global warming, the search to make the future stations sit well in their socioeconomic environment, the development of activities other than skiing and the enhancement of the unique nature of each site.
• International expertise built on development and operations dating back 25 years in France, covering 11 of the country's most prestigious ski resorts recognised for the quality of their ski area, the attention paid to visitor satisfaction and safety, and their profitability.
• The great similarity between the ambitions currently displayed by the TKF for Turkey and the history of skiing in France, and above all the French "snow plan", a 1964 programme that enabled a powerful and profitable ski industry to take shape the French mountains, where CDA has its roots.

A SUPERB PROJECT FOR THE CDA TEAM

The signing of the agreement symbolises a shared vision and the great confidence consolidated over recent months through multiple exchanges in both Turkey and the French Alps.

Turkey has the potential to develop a robust and recognised ski industry, with the existence of a skiing culture and the organisation of major sporting events (Erzurum 2011, etc.), a mountainous and high-altitude landscape offering outstanding development potential and the muted development of skiing to date (only 1% of the population skis regularly today), offering substantial scope for growth.

This first contract will include very substantial multi-criteria mapping work and the visit of pre-selected sites covering all Turkish mountain ranges. It is a major assignment in a country where mountains cover 60% of the landscape, which is a first for C DA.

Compagnie des Alpes is therefore very proud of this partnership and to be deploying the full range of its expertise as world leader in the service of a great mountain country.

THE PARTNERSHIP WILL DEEPEN OVER TIME

This first contract opens the door to multiple forms of collaboration between CDA and the TKF. Sector requirements are substantial in Turkey, particularly in terms of the standardisation and optimisation of operational processes and training for the various functions involved in the proper running of a modern ski area.

Thanks to its experience in the management of innovative, safe and profitable ski areas and high-altitude sites open all year round, CDA is well placed to contribute in the coming years to the growth of skiing and mountain tourism in Turkey, in the form of assistance or direct management of the most promising sites.

Since it was founded in 1989, Compagnie des Alpes has established itself as an uncontested global leader in the leisure industry. At the helm of 11 of the world's most prestigious ski resorts (Tignes, Val d'Isère, Les Arcs, La Plagne, Les Menuires, Les 2Alpes, Méribel, Serre-Chevalier, etc.) and 13 renowned leisure destinations (Parc Astérix, Grévin, Walibi, Futuroscope, etc.), the company is steadily expanding in Europe (France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, etc.) and, more recently, at the international level (Grévin Montréal in 2013, Grévin Prague in 2014, Grévin Seoul in 2015, Chaplin's World by Grévin in April 2016 and engineering and management assistance contracts (Russia, Morocco, Japan)). CDA also owns stakes in 4 ski areas, including Chamonix.

During its financial year ended 30 September 2016, Compagnie des Alpes welcomed nearly 22.5 million visitors and generated consolidated sales of €720.2 million. In its ski areas activity, it registered sales of €410 million on a volume of nearly 14 million skier days.

With 4,700 employees, Compagnie des Alpes works with its partners to build projects that generate unique experiences, the opposite of a standardised concept. Exceptional leisure activities for everyone.

www.compagniedesalpes.fr

Compagnie des Alpes press contacts: Sandra PICARD - +33.1 46 84 88 53 - sandra.picard@compagniedesalpes.fr Xavier YVON - +33.6 88 29 72 37- xavier.y@tmarkoagency.com