Mas, Turkeys’ first Snowboard Brand!
Tucked away in an industrial district on the Asian side of the worlds 13th largest city is a seemingly non-descrip 4 story office building. However this building is home to something surprising, a first of its kind. Surrounded by small workshops and auto garages it isn’t until you’re inside the privacy fence that you realize this place seems years apart from its surroundings.
Istanbul’s old industrial districts, called sanayi, serve as a window into a culture we dont often see anymore in the West. You’ll rarely find large scale computerized or cutting edge operations here, instead you find craftsman dedicated to mastering their trade. The Ustas, or Masters, are people whose hands contain years of knowledge of their craft and in a country where imported goods come at a dear cost their skills to repair or rebuild everything from automobiles to electronics are indispensable. This building i just pulled up to stands as a bridge between that handmade “repair before you replace” culture and the modern world. This building is home to Turkey’s craftsman culture’s first foray into modern snow sports, Mas Snowboards. (Mas Website)
Started in 2019, Mas, Mediterranean Alpine Snowboards, is groundbreaking in that it is Turkey’s first domestically produced modern snowsports equipment. While Turkey is more than 80% mountainous and home to an ancient predecessor of the snowboard called the Petran Board (Snowboarder mag), it has only recently begun developing its modern snowsports potential. A large reason for this is economical. The modern Republic of Turkey is less than 100 years old, founded after overthrowing the Ottoman Sultanate and expelling the occupying allied powers in 1923. In the 98 years since, Turkey has seen widespread change and modernization but also economic tumult and insecurity. Since the turn of the 21st century however the economic prospects of the country have generally trended upwards with major expansion and modernization of the country’s Industrial potential. This increased economic potential has seen a growth in interest and development of winter recreation, a notoriously expensive industry.
Mas represents the next step upwards on the journey to a strong Turkish snowsports industry. Previously reliant solely on imported equipment, which come with a heavy import VAT of 25-35%, Turkish snowboarders had a hard time affording to buy and replace their gear. For the 2021-22 season Mas produced over 500 units of 4 board models. Producing equipment at home will allow the prices to stay stable, even considering the wide fluctuation of value between the Dollar and Turkish Lira. Sitting at the doorstep of Europe, they are situated to offer high quality products with a shorter lead time and tighter quality control than goods produced in east asia. As well, and more importantly, they will stand as an expression of Turkish pride and Identity in a worldwide industry which is only now beginning to understand the potential of this country. Built to worldwide standard by Turkish riders (every staff member rides the boards they produce), from the board presses to the artwork, Mas snowboards represents the ingenuity and resilience of its creators and staff. We hope they enjoy a long and successful career!
