who is mel?
Mountain Equipment Lab (aka “mel”)
Design. Engineering. Experimentation.
Mountain Equipment Lab is an independent design and analysis studio with deep expertise in ski and snowboard products. We partner with your team to translate your brand’s unique identity into high-performance, ready-to-ride gear.
With years of hands-on experience in ski and snowboard factories around the world and collaborations with some of the industry’s top brands, we offer full-spectrum support—from early-stage concepting to final product delivery.
Our core capabilities include:
End-to-end product development
Brand creation & positioning
Consumer insights & market trends
Let’s Build Something
Ready to collaborate or kick off an idea? Get in touch today.
independent lab testing
Big Brand Insights, Built for You
With nearly two decades of experience designing and manufacturing skis and snowboards in the world’s top factories, mel delivers the kind of insights usually reserved for big brands with big R&D budgets.
Whether you need a quick second opinion or deep product analysis, we tailor our support to fit your goals—not a template. Your brand’s DNA is our top priority. We’re not here to make your gear like anyone else’s—we’re here to make it unmistakably yours.
How We Do It
We use in-house tools and our proprietary machinery deliver high-level performance insights and testing—typically locked behind closed doors at major R&D labs.
Now, that level of detail and precision is available to brands of all sizes.
From Idea to Launch—We’re With You at Every Stage
Whether you need end-to-end leadership or support at a specific phase, mel integrates seamlessly with your team.
We guide or collaborate on every step of the product journey:
Project definition & planning
Brand guidelines & visual language
Product & graphic design
User definition & market fit
Prototyping & testing
Production oversight
Go-to-market & launch strategy
From first sketch to final delivery—we help turn ideas into exceptional products.
WINTER product development
More Than Just Skis & Snowboards
While our roots are in ski and snowboard manufacturing, our capabilities go far beyond. mel designs and develops a wide range of mountain and outdoor products, including:
Skis & snowboards
Ski and splitboard poles
Backcountry tools
Snowboard bindings
Skin attachments
POP displays & tech showcase props
No matter your challenge, we’re here to help solve it. With a network of trusted specialists—from composite engineers to backcountry experts—we assemble the right team to move your project forward.
If it slides or carves, we can design it. Get in touch to explore what’s possible.
