This is a great article addressing the retail space. What about their sponsorship of one of the biggest Big Eq medals that gives so many juniors opportunities? Dover is so influential in the equitation competition world as well.
This is a huge question that I haven’t gone down the rabbit hole yet. Not sure if someone can just take over as title sponsor of the USEF Hunter Seat Medal
I love what you said about Amazon supporting the volume and their site driving margin. It’s so sad to see these national brands I grew up with slowly disappear, but with the constantly changing technology and environment, consumers show up so differently. I think a lot of smaller brands are trying to tackle the aspirational side of things. KBMedia/adult amateur podcast just talked about how media for our sport is so different from more commercial sports - and I think this influences the way aspirational retail shows up for equestrians, too.
Very interesting analysis and completely true! Those of us who remember Beval Saddlery will see that as a business that filled number three. They had two very successful brick and mortars with strong community ties. A successful mail order/website business, an 800 number staffed by knowledgeable equestrians, a wholesale business with 350 dealers and a third location at Wellington during the season. If someone could duplicate that they would be in the right track.
I wasn’t suggesting anyone revive Beval. I was simply suggesting that they had a good business model that worked for 50 years. They also made a tall boot and riding shirts. Nothing like Kerrits unless that occurred after 2007. I don’t recall them doing anything like you are suggesting with Kerrits. I only knew that they made tack. What year was that?
This is a great article addressing the retail space. What about their sponsorship of one of the biggest Big Eq medals that gives so many juniors opportunities? Dover is so influential in the equitation competition world as well.
It previously was Pessoa before Dover took it over ten years ago.
This is a huge question that I haven’t gone down the rabbit hole yet. Not sure if someone can just take over as title sponsor of the USEF Hunter Seat Medal
I love what you said about Amazon supporting the volume and their site driving margin. It’s so sad to see these national brands I grew up with slowly disappear, but with the constantly changing technology and environment, consumers show up so differently. I think a lot of smaller brands are trying to tackle the aspirational side of things. KBMedia/adult amateur podcast just talked about how media for our sport is so different from more commercial sports - and I think this influences the way aspirational retail shows up for equestrians, too.
Very interesting analysis and completely true! Those of us who remember Beval Saddlery will see that as a business that filled number three. They had two very successful brick and mortars with strong community ties. A successful mail order/website business, an 800 number staffed by knowledgeable equestrians, a wholesale business with 350 dealers and a third location at Wellington during the season. If someone could duplicate that they would be in the right track.
I wasn’t suggesting anyone revive Beval. I was simply suggesting that they had a good business model that worked for 50 years. They also made a tall boot and riding shirts. Nothing like Kerrits unless that occurred after 2007. I don’t recall them doing anything like you are suggesting with Kerrits. I only knew that they made tack. What year was that?
Sorry for the confusion :) I was referring to D not B. B was amazing and such a loss!
I think it’s too late to try to save the titanic. It would be like re arranging the deck chairs right before it sinks.
The time to save it was a few years ago when they should have scaled back on purchasing and selection imo
Plus stealing Kerri’s designs from Kerrits to make their own brand of stuff using her patterns was pretty crappy of them.