06 February 2024 , 13:06
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A ski company has closed its doors because Brexit and the cost of living crisis has made trading too challenging.
Powder White has ceased trading after more than 20 years citing the "immeasurable" combined impact of the "extraordinary challenges" facing UK companies in recent years. The specialist winter sport firm cited Covid, Brexit and the cost of living squeeze as obstacles it has struggled to overcome.
The London-based firm has taken down its website and replaced it with a statement explaining that it has stopped trading as of today.
It reads: "Despite our very best efforts, we have regrettably been unable to navigate the extraordinary challenges our industry has faced over recent years. The immeasurable combined impact of Brexit and Covid, which has more recently been compounded by the cost of living crisis, has resulted in us not being able to fulfil our obligations and most importantly, our valued guests’ ski holidays.
Have you been impacted by the Powder White closure? Email [email protected]
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Powder White said it is contacting customers with holidays booked (Getty Images/iStockphoto)"We are in the process of urgently contacting customers with forthcoming ski holidays to lay out the options available to them. We aim to advise everybody within the next three days.
"We would like to thank all our customers and suppliers who have shown us such loyalty over the last 20 years. Our thanks too go to our incredible team of staff who have supported us throughout. We are so hugely sorry for everyone affected by our failure."
Brexit has had an impact on the tourism sector in many different ways, as trade barriers and friction introduced between the UK and EU makes moving and working between the two significantly more difficult.
One report produced last year found that the number of UK staff working overseas in the travel industry has plummeted from almost 12,000 to fewer than 4,000 since Brexit
The Unlocking Travel’s Potential report was produced by Abta and Seasonal Businesses in Travel and showed that the number of UK workers in holiday roles in the EU has decreased from 11,970 in 2017 to just 3,700 in 2023, a drop of 69%.
The sharp rise in the cost of living - which saw annual inflation hit 10% last year - is having an effect on Brits looking to book a holiday and may have made the ski packages laid on by Powder White seem unaffordable to too many people.
Last year was a particularly bad one on the slopes of Europe, with the early part of the ski season significantly impacted by warm weather that melted pistes in resorts that can usually bank on having good snow.
Last month travel experts told the Mirror how Brexit has impacted many different parts of the sector in mostly negative ways.
Whether due to legislation, not linking up systems with previous partners in the EU, or a divergence in areas of investment, Brits are arguably suffering from a slower, more expensive and less-green system than our European neighbours.