TAKE MY ADVICE

WHERE to buy ski equipment is a question you get asked a lot in a ski shop.

Many customers have heard of tempting deals and bargains to be found in small resorts, and the idea that if your boots are uncomfortable you can go back to the shop the very same evening and have them adjusted is often too good to refuse.

Naturally, managing Ellis Brigham, I would want customers to buy at home, but I do believe there are some key points for why it is better.

First, aftercare. Aftercare is very important in a product you are going to use year on year.

When buying boots on holiday you may get that support for the week you are there, but unless you return to the same resort you will not have it on consecutive trips.

Fitting boots here, we know that if they didn’t feel good first time, you will come back until they are right. Also, living in Lochaber, where even if the snow is not falling, you can still use indoor or dry slopes, you can test your new boots out before going abroad.

And, finally, seeing as a good boot fitting should also take around two hours. I’d rather spend my holiday time on holiday, not in a shop. Simon Pitman is manager of the Ellis Brigham shop in Fort William.