Rossignol is doubling its presence in the trail running shoe market, taking another step in its diversification strategy.
After three years of intensive research and development and extensive field testing, the company has launched its first flagship high-performance trail running shoe, the Vezor.
For Rossignol, the Vezor sneaker will lead the brand’s first trail running collection for 2025. The shoe was “thoughtfully designed with a perfect balance of precision, grip and propulsion to carry dedicated trail runners over the roughest and most technical terrain,” the company said on Wednesday. The lightweight, stable and overall fast shoe is ideal for middle-distance racing, both in training and competition, Rossignol added.
“At Rossignol, we are mountain enthusiasts with a fascination for performance and testing our limits,” said Vincent Wauters, CEO of the Rossignol Group, in a statement. “Our goal is to provide the best possible solutions for all aspects of mountain sports and we are committed to developing technical solutions to make the mountains and wide open spaces accessible to everyone, from the enthusiastic amateur to the experienced athlete.”
“For these communities of mountain sports enthusiasts who explore the mountains from one season to the next, be it skiing, cycling or running, we have naturally expanded our Spring/Summer 2025 range to include the simplest and purest form of mountain sports: trail running,” added Wauters.
This launch comes at a time when trail running participation is increasing and leading footwear brands are looking to capitalize. According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s (SFIA) 2023 Topline Participation Report, the total number of trail running participants has increased for the fifth year in a row. According to SFIA, there were a total of 13.3 million trail running participants in 2022, an increase of 5.9 percent from 2021.
As for Rossignol, the company saw growth across all its business areas, with winter sports equipment accounting for 80 percent of its merchandise offering, while clothing, footwear and bicycles account for the other 20 percent. In fiscal 2023, revenue for the Rossignol Group – which consists of the Rossignol, Dynastar, Lange, Look, Kerma, Risport and Dale of Norwa brands – increased 28 percent to 401 million euros, up from 313 million euros in fiscal 2022.
