Hunter: Creepy feeling about Aspen One
Why do I get a creepy feeling about a new company called Aspen One?
George Orwell comes to mind. I realize there are many businesses with name Aspen in their title. Aspen Sports for one, even though it was owned by Vail, which closed the stores. Seriously? But none are the One.
I think it is “vertical integration” when a business owns other businesses that are different but contribute to the bottom line. As when Skico took over the ski photos and the restaurants and then opened their own sports and rental stores. I get the feeling that the City of Aspen itself is now part of the new “Aspen One.”
Aspen exists to increase the bottom line of Aspen One and satisfy their shareholders. It has been that way for a while now.
See Aspen Journalism’s entry for “1978: Twentieth Century Fox buys the Aspen Ski Corp” in its “Aspen’s skiing history: an evolving timeline” story.
Patrick Hunter
Carbondale
