Getting to know Faction, the Verbier brand shaped by freeskiing

On Christmas Eve during Faction’s first production year, 40 pairs of skis travelled from a small factory just south of Evian in France to Verbier in the back of a station wagon, concealed beneath a blanket. The company made 190 pairs that year. Two decades later, its skis are sold in more than 31 countries.

Founded in Verbier in 2006, Faction grew with modern freeskiing. Wide twin tips, park skiing and freeride lines were challenging the influence of alpine racing, while smaller brands could respond faster than established manufacturers.

Faction enters its 20th anniversary year with a range covering park, powder, all-mountain and touring. For 2026–27, it is dividing the directional Dancer family into metal-reinforced Dancer Ti skis and lighter, more playful Dancer models without Titanal. Its identity still rests on playful shapes and ski films, but the range now extends well beyond the freestyle models that established its name.

From Verbier ski bums to the Royale

Alex Hoye and Tony McWilliam created Faction after meeting in Verbier. The early group included Australian, Canadian, English and American skiers who spent their first winter testing shapes and learning how different materials affected a ski.

According to Faction’s account of its early development, the founders wanted equipment that could withstand seasons exceeding 100 days without constant servicing or special summer storage. It also had to remain affordable for skiers living in the mountains.

Production initially took place south of Evian, across the French border from Verbier. The skis were built in small numbers, giving Faction some appeal among committed freeskiers who wanted something less conventional than the piste-led equipment dominating the market.

The Royale, introduced in 2007, established the direction. Its wide waist and twin-tip profile combined freeride dimensions with freestyle intent, allowing skiers to use the same ski for soft snow, natural hits and switch landings. That mixture remains visible across much of Faction’s range.

Candide Thovex put Faction in front of a global audience

Faction’s defining partnership began in 2012, when it signed French freeskier Candide Thovex. He arrived with three X Games gold medals and a 2010 Freeride World Tour title, giving the small Verbier company a rider whose influence reached far beyond competition.

The first signature collection comprised the Candide 3.0 freeride twin, the park-focused Candide 1.0 and the children’s Candide 0.5. At the launch, Thovex said the development priorities were performance and environmental impact, “without allowing one to compromise the other”. The skis used materials including recycled PET, flax fibre and water-based inks.

The partnership also linked equipment development with film. It began with Few Words, while 2013’s One of Those Days showed Thovex skiing pistes, tunnels and woodland on Faction skis. The films carried the brand to an audience unlikely to find its limited early production in a local shop.

Faction soon developed its own film programme. We Are The Faction Collective was released in three successive instalments from 2014 to 2016, followed by projects released roughly every other year. The company’s film archive ranges from street segments to expeditions in Mongolia.

Thovex and Faction separated after the 2021–22 season. The final CT Signature Series closed a partnership lasting about 10 years, and Faction retired the CT 5.0 associated with many of his films. In the announcement confirming the split, Hoye said: “Candide’s genius undoubtedly helped put Faction on the map.”

Freestyle roots, broader skis

Faction designs and tests its products in Verbier. Production has shifted from the original French workshop to a pair of family-run factories in Poland and the Czech Republic, while the Swiss team handles engineering development and material specifications.

European suppliers provide the base materials, sidewalls, topsheets, wood, fibreglass and carbon. Faction says all its wood is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council and that its factories use renewable energy.

The company puts durability at the centre of its environmental policy. Skis are difficult to recycle because their glued construction combines plastic, rubber, wood and metal. Faction has investigated take-back schemes, but its immediate approach is to keep equipment in use through maintenance and repair.

“Quality is sustainability,” Sara Asmoarp, Faction’s global head of supply chain and ESG, said in the company’s sustainability Q&A. Faction also says it limits surplus through closer production forecasting and donates surplus skis to groups including Coombs Outdoors and Protect Our Winters Switzerland.

The athlete collective remains central to product development and media. Its recent roster has included Olympic and X Games champions Eileen Gu and Mathilde Gremaud, alongside big-mountain skiers Sam Anthamatten and Elisabeth Gerritzen. Annual visits to Japan bring the production team together with local riders, shops and skiers, giving the Verbier operation feedback from a different snowpack and ski culture.

Which Faction skis should you look at first?

The Dancer family is the clearest starting point for directional all-mountain skiers. For 2026–27, Faction has reorganised it around two constructions. The Dancer Ti retains two thin sheets of Titanal for stability and precision, with 89 mm and 99 mm models joining a 106 mm ski based on the former Dancer 3. The new Titanal-free Dancer comes in 79 mm, 89 mm and 99 mm widths, using lighter construction to make it easier to manoeuvre and less demanding over a full day.

For skiers who divide their time between the park and the rest of the mountain, the Prodigy is the more representative Faction. The Prodigy 1 has an 88 mm waist, a directional twin shape and several binding positions. A 2025 SkiEssentials test praised its edge grip and lively rebound, but found it tiring in chopped snow measuring 15 to 20 cm deep. Wider Prodigy models offer more support away from prepared pistes.

Studio is the premium freestyle and freeride family, incorporating models that previously carried the Mana and Candide lineage. These skis suit riders who place switch skiing, jumps and low swing weight ahead of directional stability. The construction continues for 2026–27, with exclusive graphics across the series marking Faction’s 20th anniversary.

Tourers should begin with the Agent, which follows the Dancer’s directional approach but removes the metal and uses a light core with woven carbon. The Agent returns without substantial changes for 2026–27. La Machine remains the deeper-snow alternative, with pronounced rocker, a paulownia core and two carbon layers. Prodigy also continues with its established construction and new graphics, while dedicated mogul skis and monoskis remain in the catalogue for more specialised buyers.

For most skiers approaching Faction for the first time, the choice is between the Dancer’s directional shape and the Prodigy’s playful twin-tip character. Within the Dancer range, stronger skiers who prioritise grip and stability at speed should look first at Dancer Ti, while the lighter Dancer is intended to be more manoeuvrable and less tiring. That distinction provides the quickest route into the wider range.