To understand Faction Skis, it helps to understand the word ‘brash.’

Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games was brash. So was Han Solo from Star Wars. And even Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic character, Sherlock Holmes. Self-assured, bold and often impulsive, they tend to act without considering the consequences, frequently resulting in unexpected outcomes. This pretty much sums up the trajectory of Faction Skis, a.k.a. The Faction Collective — from brash upstart to one of the industry’s most legitimate, core freeskiing brands. Sure, the Verbier, Switzerland-based company produces colourful, high-performance skis and is known as a “by-skiers, for-skiers” brand, but out of the gate, it was more about cheeky, brazen attitude than anything else.

In the late 1990s, the introduction of twin-tip skis and new-school skiing catalyzed the ski industry’s resurgence after a decade of stagnation and domination by snowboarding. Primarily led by The New Canadian Air Force — a group of Canadian ex-mogul skiers — the movement saved skiing, and soon, most companies had twin-tips in their lineup. Still, after doing the same thing for so many years, it proved a challenge for conservative cultures within the older, established brands to broaden their focus from ski racing to freeskiing. And so, while they took their sweet time getting on board, more creative souls saw an opportunity.

Along with Armada and Black Crows, Faction burst onto the ski scene in 2006 — all brash upstarts at the forefront of a new ski movement. The name Faction was carefully chosen to brand itself as a small cabal within a larger, established entity, one bringing new ideas to challenge the status quo.

Faction’s co-founder and CEO Alex Hoye

In the mid-2000s, Hoye was an American businessman living in the UK looking for a break after a tough grind. Growing up as a skier in Idaho, Hoye studied at Stanford University and Harvard Business School, graduating to work for Disney and then joining American strategy and management consulting juggernaut McKinsey. Eventually landing in London, Hoye built up a successful auction business for industrial equipment. After seven years of working around the clock, Hoye took the company public and sold it. At 36, he now had enough money to take some time off and live a little. His first stop was Verbier, where he randomly met Tony McWilliam, an Australian designer and ski bum.

“He was a talented artist, so I commissioned an art piece from him,” recalls Hoye. “Afterwards, we met for a beer and started to talk about skiing. We shared similar visions, and that night, he sold me on the idea of starting a ski company.”

With necessary creativity and legitimate ski-bum vision but lacking capital and business experience, McWilliam had already produced a few prototypes under the Faction name. Hoye’s acumen and global connections would be the perfect complement, launching the company on a solid footing.

From the outset, the partners wanted to create a culture similar to that of the snowboard industry. But while confident they could bring innovation and excitement to ski-making, they also decided to commit to quality because “cool itself is not lasting.” So, job one was to invest in craftsmanship.

Over the following years, Hoye split his time between running a digital marketing agency and working in private equity in London while wishing he was in the mountains. Still, he devoted himself to helping Faction grow from a distance. But despite talented leadership and the duo’s perfect timing, building a solid reputation as a core freeskiing brand wasn’t as easy as anticipated. In its first year of production, 2006-07, Faction sold 190 pairs of skis, not including the batch of 36 pairs of prototypes McWilliam smuggled across the French-Swiss border.

Being who they were, Faction couldn’t wait to see if their envisioned culture would develop organically. Instead, in typical Katniss Everdeen style, they created it themselves. The Faction Collective was born to encompass fans, athletes, employees, and even investors. These partnerships became pivotal to product development and helped gain customers’ trust globally.

As recognition quickly grew, production volume and sales increased apace. By 2012, Faction had revenues of $785,000 USD, and Hoye could finally turn his back on the corporate city lifestyle to go all-in with his ski company.

That same year, the team firmly repositioned in Verbier, Faction stunned the ski industry by announcing a partnership with French superstar Candide Thovex. Still a relatively small brand, signing the Michael Jordan of freeskiing was a game-changer — a statement that the young company was ready to take the next step.

Riding a wave generated by Thovex’s immense appeal, growth further accelerated when the company secured funding from angel investors. Launching an entire line under Candide’s name, they became immediate best-sellers in ski shops worldwide.

Previously, Faction had relied primarily on its products and hard work, but the brand instantly became more visible with Thovex and other well-known skiers on board. It also helped that Thovex was not only one of the best skiers to have ever clicked into a pair of bindings but also a media genius. Although he starred in many films in his career, the world-famous Audi Quattro commercial and his landmark Ski the World, each with millions of views on YouTube, are some of the most-seen ski films in history — all featuring Thovex ripping it up on Factions.

Even after the Frenchman eventually decided to move on and start his own ski company, the ten-year collaboration had taken Faction to a much higher level than they’d ever envisioned. Though Thovex’s legacy still means a lot, Faction’s strength has grown well beyond his influence.

If partnering with Thovex represented one crucial brand milestone, the revolving door that characterized 2017/18 was the next. McWilliam departed, and shortly after, the renowned Austrian ski engineer Daniel Tanzer joined the team. Over the next few years, Tanzer renewed every ski in the line-up, a massive investment that substantially improved products. Increased sales meant Faction met the production volume requirement in Austria’s best factories, further improving quality and enhancing the brand’s reputation. Since winter 2021, production has nearly doubled, much of the success attributable to the investment in engineering and quality manufacturing investments.

In addition, an eye for sustainability saw Faction become one of the first ski companies globally to qualify for the environmentally prestigious B Corp certification. Today, most of its skis are made in a factory run on entirely renewable energy. The factory also integrates recycled materials into top sheets, bases, and sidewalls, significantly reducing each ski’s carbon footprint.

Over the years, Faction attracted significant backing from big wallets and engaged in notable collaborations with brands including Aston Martin, Prada and the luxury Swiss watch brand IWC Schaffhausen, ski destinations like Verbier and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and artists such as Parade Studio and Elsa Grace. But Faction still managed to maintain a substantial following of core skiers. In fact, the Collective model was eventually applied to their investment base, and now individual shareholders and management own 100 percent of the company. Each spring, investors meet in Verbier to ski, test products, and meet-and-greet with athletes, brand executives and employees. The unique ownership model creates an authentic and highly desirable personal feel for the brand.

Indeed, Faction’s athlete program remains the focus of the Collective’s annual film production efforts. Investing in close relationships with some of the world’s most high-profile skiers remains integral to its marketing strategy — from Olympic, X Games and Freeride World Tour champions, to esteemed mountain professionals. Skiers like the Beijing Games gold medalist in big air and halfpipe, Eileen Gu; big-mountain skier and mountain guide Sam Anthamatten; the 2021 FWT champion Elisabeth Gerritzen; and Matej Svancer, a young Czech who won the Youth Olympics in big air as a 15-year-old, are just some of the prolific skiers on the roaster.

As one of the world’s leading mid-size ski brands, Faction now sells some 50,000 pairs of skis annually, with projected revenues approaching $20 million USD. But if the company’s growth continues, so does the excitement it generates — because it’s anyone’s guess what the brash upstart will do next.