In November 2014, upon the recommendation of Professor Zhang from the Heilongjiang Ice and Snow Industry Research Center and at the invitation of the government of the Yabuli Ski Resort Management Committee, Japan’s largest ski operations group, Mac Earth, visited the Yabuli Ski Resort in China and engaged in friendly exchanges and discussions regarding long-term cooperation. Mr. Kazumi Ichinomoto, Chairman of Mac Earth Co., Ltd., and Mr. Shinichi Koshiyama, its Operations Director, both spoke highly of the Yabuli Ski Resort. Although no specific cooperation agreements were reached during this brief inspection and meeting, the two sides gained an in-depth understanding of each other and looked forward to future collaboration. Mac Earth hopes and is confident that through long-term cooperation, it can help Yabuli build a top-tier ski resort brand.
The Japanese Mac Earth ski operations group began in 2008 with the acquisition and operation of the International Ski Resort in Shiga Prefecture. Within just six years, it grew significantly, turning all its affiliated ski resorts profitable and achieving year-round operations. In March of this year, Mac Earth also signed a capital partnership with CDA-Alpes Group, the world’s largest ski resort operator based in France. To date, Mac Earth’s ski business in Japan spans the entire country—from Hokkaido in the north to Hiroshima in the south. In addition to 33 ski resorts, it operates 27 hotels near ski areas, outdoor education facilities, 14 green parks, 6 campsites, and 7 golf courses, holding a pivotal position in Japan’s ski industry. Among them, Dynaland Ski Resort in Gifu ranks among the top five in sales nationwide.
As China’s largest ski resort and winter sports training base, Yabuli has been committed to enhancing its development capabilities and competitiveness, further pursuing internationalization and advancement. Seizing this opportunity, Yabuli provided Mac Earth with a detailed introduction to its various strengths and current development status, including the “Three Mountains Network” project jointly implemented with the government, as well as other mountain outdoor sports and golf course construction initiatives beyond skiing, fully showcasing Yabuli’s full-industry-chain prospects for year-round operations. Through in-depth mutual understanding, Mr. Kazumi Ichinomoto, Chairman of Mac Earth, also expressed hope to share his experience with Yabuli in the future, fostering multifaceted cooperation and making Yabuli an even more attractive global ski resort destination.
On November 27, Mr. Kazumi Ichinomoto and his team from Mac Earth Co., Ltd. also visited Heilongjiang Vocational College, where they held enthusiastic discussions with the school’s leaders and faculty on jointly cultivating talent for the ice and snow industry.
Heilongjiang is a major province for the ice and snow industry, boasting superior ice and snow resources. As a key public full-time ordinary higher education institution in Heilongjiang Province and a backbone vocational college under the “National Demonstration Higher Vocational College Construction Plan,” Heilongjiang Vocational College places great emphasis on school-enterprise cooperation in talent cultivation. To serve the development of Heilongjiang’s ice and snow industry as well as China’s broader ice and snow sector, the college has been actively exploring the establishment of ice and snow industry programs to nurture talent. During the friendly discussions, Mr. Kazumi Ichinomoto also invited teachers from the college’s School of Business Administration to visit the Mac Earth Group during the ski season to lay the groundwork for developing specific talent cultivation plans for further cooperation. Mr. Ichinomoto also pointed out that China’s ski industry is a rapidly growing sector, and the two sides should promptly establish and accelerate the training of relevant talent—not only to lay the foundation for Mac Earth Group’s future entry into the Chinese market but also to support the sound development of China’s ski industry and the growth of winter culture in China and Asia.