I think it is literal. Someone has made a ski slope-- probably a miniature behind a glass window so that people can look at it. I would guess that it is not real-- maybe there are clay or plastic figures of people on the slope. I could be wrong, though. Maybe there is a real ski hill that is covered with something white that looks like snow, but is not snow. Then real people could ski down a short distance to the bottom of the slope. It would attract interest. That is what a mall wants to do-- attract people.