business plan for horse stable

Horse Boarding Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Horse Boarding Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their horse businesses. On this page, we will first give you some background information with regard to the importance of business planning. We will then go through a horse boarding business plan template step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

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What is a Horse Boarding Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your horse boarding business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategy for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

Why You Need a Business Plan Horse Boarding Facility

If you’re looking to start a horse boarding facility or grow your existing horse business, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your horse business in order to improve your chances of success. Your business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Sources of Funding for Horse Boarding Facilities

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a horse business are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans and angel investors. With regards to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to confirm that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business.

Personal savings is the other most common form of funding for a horse boarding business. Venture capitalists will usually not fund a horse business. They might consider funding a horse business with a national presence, but never an individual location. This is because most venture capitalists are looking for millions of dollars in return when they make an investment, and an individual location could never achieve such results. With that said, personal savings and bank loans are the most common funding paths for horse boarding facilities.

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How to write a business plan for a horse boarding facility.

If you want to start a horse business or expand your current one, you need a business plan. The horse boarding business plan template and guide below will help you write each essential section of your own business plan.

Executive Summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of horse business you are operating and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a horse business that you would like to grow, or are you operating boarding facilities in multiple markets?

Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan. For example, give a brief overview of the horse boarding industry. Discuss the type of horse business you are operating. Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers. Provide a snapshot of your marketing plan. Identify the key members of your team. And offer an overview of your financial plan.

Company Analysis

In your company analysis, you will detail the type of horse business you are operating.

For example, you might operate one of the following types of horse facilities:

Full Boarding : this type of horse business will include all the necessities for the horse as well as a stall and full turnout to pasture.
Pasture Boarding: this type of boarding business focuses on the horse living outdoors in the pasture along with food, water, and a run-in shelter.
Self-Care Boarding: this type of horse business is where the facilities (shelter and a stall) are provided for the horse owner, but everything else is up to the owner, such as feed, bedding, cleaning, grooming, etc.

In addition to explaining the type of horse business you will operate, the Company Analysis section of your business plan needs to provide background on the business.

Include answers to questions such as:

When and why did you start the business?
What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of customers served, the number of positive reviews, etc.
Your legal structure. Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.

Industry Analysis

In your industry analysis, you need to provide an overview of the horse boarding industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the horse boarding industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.

Secondly, market research can improve your strategy, particularly if your research identifies market trends.

The third reason for market research is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your horse boarding business plan:

How big is the horse boarding industry (in dollars)?
Is the market declining or increasing?
Who are the key competitors in the market?
Who are the key suppliers in the market?
What trends are affecting the industry?
What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential market for your horse business? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your local population.

Customer Analysis

The customer analysis section of your horse boarding business plan must detail the customers you serve and/or expect to serve.

The following are examples of customer segments: households with income above $75,000, households with income between $50,000 and $75,000, and households with income below $50,000.

As you can imagine, the customer segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of horse business you operate. Clearly, more affluent households would respond to different marketing promotions than middle-income households, for example.

Try to break out your target customers in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, include a discussion of the ages, genders, locations and income levels of the customers you seek to serve. Because most horse businesses primarily serve customers living in the same city or town, such demographic information is easy to find on government websites.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target customers. The more you can understand and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your customers.

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Competitive Analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.

Direct competitors are other horse businesses.

Indirect competitors are other options that customers have to purchase from that aren’t direct competitors. This includes landowners with stables, livestock farmers, and landowners with a large pastures. You need to mention such competition as well.

With regards to direct competition, you want to describe the other horse businesses with which you compete. Most likely, your direct competitors will be horse boarding facilities within a few hours’ drive of your location.

For each such competitor, provide an overview of their businesses and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as:

What type of horse training or boarding services do they offer?
How many horses do they board at any given time?
What is their pricing (premium, low, etc.)?
What are they good at?
What are their weaknesses?

With regard to the last two questions, think about your answers from the customers’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ customers what they like most and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:

Will you provide services competitors don’t offer?
How often will a horse be examined by a veterinarian?
What service plans/tiers will you offer for the horse owner?
Will you offer better pricing?

Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.

Marketing Plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a horse business, your marketing plan should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type of horse business that you documented in your Company Analysis. Then, detail the specific products you will be offering. For example, in addition to horse boarding services, will you provide other services such as premium food, grooming, horse training, horseback riding lessons, etc.?

Price : Document the prices you will offer and how they compare to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of your marketing plan, you are presenting the services you offer and their prices.

Place : Place refers to the location of your horse business. Document your location and mention how the location will impact your success. For example, is your horse business located within driving distance of a large metro area, near a horse training or horse racing facility, etc. Discuss how your location might be the ideal location for your customers.

Promotions : The final part of your marketing strategy is the promotions section. Here you will document how you will drive customers to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

Advertising in local papers and magazines
Reaching out to local websites
Social media marketing
Local radio advertising

Operations Plan

While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your horse business, including marketing your business, feeding, grooming, maintenance, etc.

Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to board your 50 th horse or when you hope to reach $X in revenue. It could also be when you expect to expand your horse business to a new market.

Management Team

To demonstrate your horse business’ ability to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.

Ideally you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing horse businesses. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act like mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in some aspect of the equine industry or successfully marketing small businesses.

Financial Plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your income statement, balance sheet and cash flow statements.

Income Statement : an income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. It shows your revenues and then subtracts your costs to show whether you turned a profit or not.

In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you board 1 horse at a time or multiple horses at a time? And will sales grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.

Balance Sheets : Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your horse business, this will not give you immediate profits. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you generate profits for years to come. Likewise, if a bank writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.

Cash Flow Statement : Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and make sure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can turn a profit but run out of money and go bankrupt.

In developing your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a horse business:

Location build-out including design fees, construction, etc.
Cost of equipment and supplies
Payroll or salaries paid to staff
Business insurance
Taxes and permits
Legal expenses

Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your stable blueprints, or the cost of providing resources such as feed, tools, labor, etc.

Putting together a business plan for your horse business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will really understand the horse boarding industry, your competition, and your customers. You will have developed a marketing plan and will really understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful horse boarding facility.

Horse Boarding Business Plan FAQs

What is the easiest way to complete my horse boarding business plan.

Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily complete your Horse Boarding Business Plan.

What is the Goal of a Business Plan's Executive Summary?

The goal of your Executive Summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the type of horse boarding business you are operating and the status; for example, are you a startup, do you have a horse boarding business that you would like to grow, or are you operating a chain of horse boarding businesses?

Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your Horse Boarding business plan?

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Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success. Click here to see how Growthink’s professional business plan consulting services can create your business plan for you.

Horse Boarding Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Horse Boarding Business Plan

You’ve come to the right place to create your Horse Boarding business plan.

We have helped over 1,000 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans and many have used them to start or grow their Horse Boarding businesses.

Below is a template to help you create each section of your Horse Boarding business plan.

Executive Summary

Business overview.

Medford Stables, located in Medford, Oregon is a new horse boarding company that focuses on providing high-quality, full-care horse boarding for recreational horse owners. The company provides all the essentials every horse needs to be healthy and happy in a spacious ranch-style boarding facility. Medford Stables aims to be the premier horse boarding company providing the best horse care and customer service in the area.

Medford Stables’ most valuable asset is the expertise and experience of its founder, Jane Doe. Jane has been in the horse boarding business for the past 20 years. During this time she developed a deep understanding of the horse boarding industry and how to care for horses so they are always in peak health and happiness. She will use her love for horses to create the best horse boarding company in the Medford, Oregon area.

Product Offering

Medford Stables will provide all of the essentials every horse needs on a daily basis to be healthy and happy. Customers can rest assured their horse will be in good hands. Additionally, the company will offer horse training and horseback riding lessons.

The following are the products and services included in the monthly boarding fees:

Designated Stall with Hay and Shavings
Food & Water
Daily Feeding
Pasture Access
Stall Cleaning
Veterinary Visits (customer pays for vet fees)
Supplement & Medication Administration
Horse Training
Riding Lessons

Customer Focus

Medford Stables will primarily serve horse owners within a 20 mile radius of our location in Medford, Oregon. The customer segments that are typically horse owners are wealthy residents, rural residents and farmers, and families.

Management Team

Medford Stables will also have an experienced assistant who will be trained in handling the administrative tasks of the business. The desired individual will have an undergraduate business degree and years of management experience. Medford Stables will also employ certified horse trainers, experienced horseback riding instructors, and an on-call veterinarian in case of medical emergencies.

Success Factors

Medford Stables will be able to achieve success by offering the following competitive advantages:

Customer-Oriented Service: Medford Stables will have a full-time assistant to keep in contact with customers and answer their everyday questions. Jane Doe realizes the importance of accessibility to her customers, and will further keep in touch with them through weekly newsletters.
Management: Jane has been extremely successful working in the horse boarding business and will be able to use her previous experience to assure customers of the care that Medford Stables will take to do the job right. Her unique qualifications will serve customers in a much more sophisticated manner than Medford Stables’ competitors.
Relationships: Having lived in the community for 35 years, Jane knows many of the local leaders, newspapers, and other influences. Furthermore, she will be able to draw from her ties to horse owners from her work in the equestrian industry to develop an initial client base.
Scope of Services Available: The company will provide a wider range of services than its competitors. No other horse boarding facility in the area offers horseback riding lessons, horse training, and full-care for a single monthly fee.

Financial Highlights

Medford Stables is seeking a total funding of $425,000 of debt capital to open its horse boarding company. The capital will be used for funding capital expenditures and location build-out, hiring initial employees, marketing expenses, and working capital. Specifically, these funds will be used as follows:

Boarding facility design/build-out: $100,000
Equipment and supplies: $75,000
Three Months Of Overhead Expenses (Rent, Salaries, Utilities): $100,000
Working Capital: $100,000
Marketing and Advertising: $50,000

The following graph outlines the pro forma financial projections for Medford Stables.

Company Overview

Who is medford stables.

Medford Stables’ History

Jane Doe began researching what it would take to create her own horse boarding company and did a thorough analysis on the costs, market, demographics, and competition. Jane has compiled enough information to develop her business plan in order to approach investors.

Once her market analysis was complete, Jane began surveying the local available ranch property and located an ideal location for an equestrian facility. Jane incorporated Medford Stables as a Limited Liability Corporation on May 1st, 2023.

Once the sale is finalized on the property, construction can begin to build-out the stable and ancillary facilities.

Since incorporation, the company has achieved the following milestones:

Located available equestrian space for sale that is ideal for a full-care horse boarding business.
Developed the company’s name, logo, and website.
Hired a general contractor for the build-out of the stable and facilities.
Determined equipment and necessary supplies.
Began recruiting key employees with previous horse boarding, horse training, and horseback riding instruction experience.

Medford Stables’ Services

Industry analysis.

Horse boarding is part of the wider equestrian market. The U.S. equestrian market is a $122 billion industry. This industry is segmented into competition horse ownership and recreation horse ownership.

There are 7.2 million commercial and recreational horses in the United States and 28 million people who consider themselves horse enthusiasts. Trail and pleasure riding is the most popular activity among recreational horse owners.

In the equestrian market, horse boarding is one of the top revenue generators, followed by riding lessons and horse training. Recreational horse owners spend around $8,000 per year on horse care such as veterinary visits, grooming, medicine, leather care, boarding fees (52% of spending is on boarding fees), bridles, straps, hoof treatments, and saddles.

Industry operators can compete effectively by providing top notch service and quality care for their customers’ horses. Customers are typically willing to pay more for quality service they can depend on when it comes to care for their horses.

Due to the recovering economy and increased spending on horse and horse-related activities, industry revenue is expected to increase over the next several years. This is a great time to start a new horse boarding company as it is expected that many people will buy and own horses for the first time in the next couple of years.

Customer Analysis

Demographic profile of target market.

Medford Stables will serve the horse owners in the community of Medford, Oregon and its surrounding areas.

The community of Medford has a growing number of recreational horse owners. Horseback riding is becoming a popular past-time for both children and adults in the area. The area is also populated mostly by moderate to wealthy individuals who lead busy lifestyles; as a result, they have both the need for horse boarding services and the means to pay for it.

The demographics of Medford, Oregon are as follows:

Customer Segmentation

Medford Stables will primarily target the following customer profile:

Rural residents and farmers
Wealthy horse owners

Competitive Analysis

Direct and indirect competitors.

Medford Stables will face competition from other companies with similar business profiles. A description of each competitor company is below.

Country Horse Ranch

Country Horse Ranch is a horse boarding company in Medford, Oregon. In business for over 35 years, Country Horse Ranch is well known in the community. The stable offers self-care boarding which includes a monthly rental fee for a basic stall. The customers are responsible for all feeding, care, and grooming for their own horses. Horse owners who have specific requirements for their horses and want to take a hands-on approach to horse care prefer this facility because it is one of the cheapest options available. The stable fee includes access to the riding trails available on the company’s large horse ranch. The company does not offer horse training or horseback riding lessons.

Fanny’s Full Service Horse Stables

Fanny’s Full Service Horse Stables is a local full-care boarding facility. The company charges a boarding fee by the week or the month, so customers can choose to board their horses on a short-or-long-term basis. Fanny’s provides all the necessary horse care supplies and equipment and is ideal for customers who are looking for a hands-off approach to horse ownership. The boarding fees include pasture access and daily grooming and exercise sessions with experienced farmhands.

While this company offers many of the same services as Medford Stables, it does not offer horse training or horseback riding lessons, which is something that many locals have requested. Additionally, the company’s customer service is lacking according to many customer reviews.

Hilly Land Horse Boarding

Founded in 1975, Hilly Land Horse Boarding is also a local horse boarding company that offers partial care services. The customer is responsible for providing all the supplies their horse will need, but the company will provide the care on a daily basis. This stable is a popular choice for horse owners with busy schedules who still want to use all of their own horse supplies. This company provides boarding services at a moderate price point, making it a popular choice for horse owners who can’t afford a full-care stable. Stable fees include Hilly Land’s pasture access. However, the company does not offer riding lessons or horse training.

Competitive Advantage

Medford Stables offers several advantages over its competition. Those advantages are:

Marketing Plan

Brand & value proposition.

Medford Stables will offer the unique value proposition to its clientele:

Customer-focused service that treats each horse individually with excellent care
Superior, customized service built on long-term relationships
Proven track record and expertise in the industry
Full-service boarding that includes care, training, and riding lessons

Promotions Strategy

The promotions strategy for Medford Stables is as follows:

Social Media

Medford Stables will invest heavily in a social media advertising campaign. Jane will create the company’s social media accounts and invest in ads on all social media platforms. It will use targeted marketing to appeal to the target demographics.

Website/SEO

Medford Stables will invest heavily in developing a professional website that displays all of the features and benefits of the company and its facilities. It will also invest heavily in SEO so that the brand’s website will appear at the top of search engine results.

Equestrian Events

Jane Doe will visit multiple equestrian events to hand out brochures for the stable. The company will ask event hosts to keep a handful of brochures on hand and pass them out to their clients. Because the founder is well-known in the industry, she believes the equestrian event organizers will be happy to hand out her brochures.

Local Publications

The company will also invest in advertising in selected local publications until it has achieved significant brand awareness. Advertisements in local newspapers, magazines, and circulars will be a large part of the initial marketing strategy.

Medford Stables’ pricing will be premium due to the higher quality of its services over its competitors. Customers will be confident in the quality of care their horses will receive when purchasing the company’s boarding services.

Operations Plan

The following will be the operations plan for Medford Stables. Operation Functions:

Jane Doe will be the Owner and President of the company. She will oversee all staff, manage client relations, and be in charge of the general operations of the company. Jane will spend the next several months hiring the following staff:
An Administrative Assistant who will oversee all administrative aspects of running the horse boarding company. This will include bookkeeping, tax payments, and payroll of the staff. They will also be available to answer all client questions and concerns.
Several stable hands to care for the horses and keep the stables clean.
Several horse instructors to help train the horses.
Veterinarians who can provide checkups and care for the horses when they are ill or injured.

Milestones:

Medford Stables aims to achieve the following goals in the next six months.

6/202X – Finalize lease agreement
7/202X – Design and build out Medford Stables office
8/202X – Hire and train initial staff
9/202X – Kickoff of promotional campaign
10/202X – Reach break-even
11/202X – Reach 20 ongoing clients

Financial Plan

Key revenue & costs.

Medford Stables’ revenues will come primarily from its horse boarding fees. The company will charge boarding fees on a monthly basis. The boarding fees are all-inclusive.

The boarding facility purchase/build-out, equipment, supplies, and labor expenses will be the key cost drivers of Medford Stables. Ongoing marketing expenditures are also notable cost drivers for Medford Stables.

Funding Requirements and Use of Funds

Key assumptions.

The following table outlines the key assumptions required in order to achieve the revenue and cost numbers in the financials and pay off the business loan.

Number of clients per month

Financial Projections

Income statement, balance sheet, cash flow statement, horse boarding business plan faqs, what is a horse boarding business plan.

A horse boarding business plan is a plan to start and/or grow your horse boarding business. Among other things, it outlines your business concept, identifies your target customers, presents your marketing plan and details your financial projections.

You can easily complete your Horse Boarding business plan using our Horse Boarding Business Plan Template here .

What are the Main Types of Horse Boarding Businesses?

There are a number of different kinds of horse boarding businesses , some examples include: Full Boarding, Pasture Boarding, and Self-Care Boarding.

How Do You Get Funding for Your Horse Boarding Business Plan?

Horse Boarding businesses are often funded through small business loans. Personal savings, credit card financing and angel investors are also popular forms of funding.

What are the Steps To Start a Horse Boarding Business?

Starting a horse boarding business can be an exciting endeavor. Having a clear roadmap of the steps to start a business will help you stay focused on your goals and get started faster.

1. Develop A Horse Boarding Business Plan - The first step in starting a business is to create a detailed horse boarding business plan that outlines all aspects of the venture. This should include potential market size and target customers, the services or products you will offer, pricing strategies and a detailed financial forecast.

2. Choose Your Legal Structure - It's important to select an appropriate legal entity for your horse boarding business. This could be a limited liability company (LLC), corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. Each type has its own benefits and drawbacks so it’s important to do research and choose wisely so that your horse boarding business is in compliance with local laws.

3. Register Your Horse Boarding Business - Once you have chosen a legal structure, the next step is to register your horse boarding business with the government or state where you’re operating from. This includes obtaining licenses and permits as required by federal, state, and local laws.

4. Identify Financing Options - It’s likely that you’ll need some capital to start your horse boarding business, so take some time to identify what financing options are available such as bank loans, investor funding, grants, or crowdfunding platforms.

5. Choose a Location - Whether you plan on operating out of a physical location or not, you should always have an idea of where you’ll be based should it become necessary in the future as well as what kind of space would be suitable for your operations.

6. Hire Employees - There are several ways to find qualified employees including job boards like LinkedIn or Indeed as well as hiring agencies if needed – depending on what type of employees you need it might also be more effective to reach out directly through networking events.

7. Acquire Necessary Horse Boarding Equipment & Supplies - In order to start your horse boarding business, you'll need to purchase all of the necessary equipment and supplies to run a successful operation.

8. Market & Promote Your Business - Once you have all the necessary pieces in place, it’s time to start promoting and marketing your horse boarding business. This includes creating a website, utilizing social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter, and having an effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy. You should also consider traditional marketing techniques such as radio or print advertising.

Learn more about how to start a successful horse boarding business:

How to Start a Horse Boarding Business

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The Ultimate Guide To Building An Equestrian Business

August 10, 2022.

Hi, I'm Paige, half of the duo behind Fairway Stables™

This website is the one I've been searching for, for years; a compilation of knowledge on all things horsemanship, including practical advice on how to start an equestrian business. No matter your experience level with horses or homesteading, I hope this is a place you can get lost in, and learn something along the way - we welcome everyone from vets, to lifelong ranchers, trainer, to nonprofits contributing.

Glossary of Equestrian Business Terms

Equestrian Business Ideas
What to Consider Before Starting an Equestrian Business

How to Start an Equestrian Business

Growing your equestrian business.

What Is an Equestrian Business? A Brief Overview

There’s no strict definition for an equestrian business. An equestrian is a person who rides a horse. As an adjective, equestrian can refer to anything related to horseback riding.

A business is an activity or enterprise entered into for profit. Put those together and you get an equestrian business.

Equestrian businesses can be anything that focuses on horses or horseback riding, including businesses that house or train horses, care for horses, show horses, or breed horses. It may also include the businesses responsible for managing facilities, pasture, waste removal, and more.

How Big Is the Equestrian Industry?

In the US, there are roughly 158,000 equestrian businesses and no major companies.

Each business represents a small portion of market share (<5%), While a third of US households have a horse enthusiast, only 1.3 percent own a horse. The remainder participate in horse activities or enjoy horse events.

How Much Is the Equestrian Industry Worth?

The equestrian industry is worth $122 billion and created 1.7 million jobs in the US. There’s not only direct contribution with economic activity that occurs in the horse industry itself, but also the positive ripple effect into other economic activity outside of the horse industry.

Horse Ranch

A ranch is a large farm used for raising animals, such as cattle, sheep, or horses. A horse ranch focuses specifically on horses.

Generally, a stable can refer to a building that houses horses or an establishment where horses are kept and trained.

Equestrian Facility

An equestrian facility is a facility designed to accommodate, train, or compete with horses. Based on their use, an equestrian facility may be referred to as an equestrian center, stables, riding hall, barn, livery yard, boarding stable, or ranch.

A stud farm is a term used in animal husbandry to indicate a facility for selective breeding. While stud comes from Old English and means a “herd of horses or place where horses are kept for breeding,” the modern use of the term refers to a stallion that’s currently used for breeding. Stud farms may be full breeding operations or purely stud service.

Boarding Stable

Also known as a livery yard or livery stable, a boarding stable is a facility that houses and cares for other people’s horses for a fee.

Riding Stable

A riding stable is a facility that houses horses for equestrian activities. Though separate from a boarding stable, the two may be combined. A riding school or academy may also be called a riding stable.

Barn is a colloquial term for a stable or equestrian facility. Barns are located on farms and hold equipment, grain, and sometimes horses or cows, but they’re distinct from a stable.

Farm is a catch-all term for activities related to agriculture. Though technology is reserved for food production, “farms” may include feedlots, orchards, and ranches. Properties with horses aren’t typically referred to as a horse farm (with the exception of a stud farm). The purpose and use of the facility determine which term is preferred.

21 Equestrian Business Ideas

Let’s take a look at several equestrian business ideas that can help you turn your passion into profit.

Boarding/Livery

For many horse owners or enthusiasts, keeping a horse at home isn’t an option. They still want to ride, however, so they look into a boarding or livery facility.

Generally, a boarding stable charges a monthly fee to house a horse and provide for its needs. Boarding stables offer different options for board, and the monthly charge depends on factors like pasture or turnout, location, amenities, on-site trainers and instructors, tack storage, and more.

Typically, boarding stables offer the following fee options:

This includes all the necessities for the horse, plus a stall with full turnout. Full board is the most time- and work-intensive, since owners leave all the work to the facility – they clean the stalls, feed the horse multiple times a day, and take it in and out to pasture. For a busy adult equestrian or the overwhelmed parents of a child rider, this is an ideal option.

Some boarding facilities also offer additional services for a fee, such as lessons with a qualified instructor, access to indoor or outdoor riding arenas, trails, or equipment use. Owners may have to pay for specialized feeds and supplements, grooming, blanketing, and similar services.

Typically, veterinary care and farrier care are the financial responsibility of the owner. Some facilities will maintain the same veterinarian and farrier for the entire facility, while others will allow owners to bring in their preferred professionals. For a new horse owner, having vetted and qualified professionals offers peace of mind, but an experienced equestrian may prefer their own veterinarian and farrier.

Partial Boarding

Partial boarding is essentially a timeshare with a horse. In this situation, the owner shares the use of their horse with another person in exchange for cheaper boarding fees. This arrangement may be used for owners with horses that are docile enough to be “school” horses, or lesson horses, but it may also be beneficial for a busy adult with a horse that’s suitable for another rider.

In this arrangement, both parties split the boarding costs. For example, if board is typically $500 per month, but the horse is used for lessons, the owner will only pay $250. This does involve a contract agreement to ensure that everyone is protected, which may outline how often the horse may be ridden, whether the rider can bring their own equipment, and who is responsible for farrier and veterinarian services.

Pasture Board

Pasture board can be an economical option for an owner and convenient for you. If you have land, you permit the horse to live outdoors year-round with feed, water, and a simple run-in shelter. The work and maintenance is minimal compared to a full boarding facility while giving you income from your land.

Depending on the climate, pasture board may offer additional services like blanketing in cold weather, either included or for a fee. Pasture board also requires you – or your staff – monitor the horses outside to ensure they’re cared for properly.

Pasture board is appealing for its low fees, though horses get less attentive care in this arrangement. This is ideal for occasional riders, retired older horses, horses that prefer to roam, and horses with medical conditions like recurrent airway disease (heaves).

In addition, someone with well-bred show horses or breeding horses typically want minimal turnout alone to avoid potential injuries or blemishes that affect the horse’s appearance, such as bite marks or cuts.

Self-Care Board

Self-care board is basically renting out only the facility and amenities but leaving the actual care to the owner. The horse gets a stall and access to turnout, but the owner must provide their own feed and bedding, muck out the stall, feed and water the horse, and bring it in and out from the pasture. They also handle their own arrangements for veterinary and farrier services.

For people who live near the stable, self-care board is a convenient and economical solution. They get to take a hands-on approach to their own horse’s needs, even if they don’t have land. Sometimes, groups of riding friends will take a self-care board arrangement and handle the care of each other’s horses in shifts to make chores more practical and convenient.

The downside of a self-care board is that owners don’t have schedule freedom or flexibility. They are responsible for their own horse’s care at all times and have to make arrangements for vacations or other obligations. As the facility owner, you can offer care for an extra fee when the owners are unavailable to care for their own horses.

Short-Term Boarding

If you have a facility with extra space, short-term boarding provides accommodation for horses if owners are traveling or moving. Short-term and overnight boarders can add income to an existing boarding facility and make up for empty stalls.

Many boarding facilities offer multiple types of short-term boarding with different fees, such as one-day, one-week, or one-month boarding. The traveler may supply the feed and buckets, but the facility handles the stall, bedding, turnout, and care.

Short-term boarding can be beneficial in many ways and boosts the exposure of a stable, but it’s important to have the right setup. Traveling horses can present a disease or injury risk to the other boarders, which is why owners need to supply buckets. There should be stalls and turnout that are separate from the long-term boarding clients.

Retirement Boarding

In many ways, retirement boarding is similar to a nursing home for elderly humans. Owners who no longer compete or ride – or ride only occasionally – can enjoy the benefits of boarding in a quieter facility than a competition stable. In addition to older horses, these facilities may board horses that have been put out of commission due to injury.

Retirement boarding may be structured as a full-service, partial, or self-care boarding arrangement. All the horse’s needs are cared for, including veterinary and farrier services, but in a low-key environment.

Additional Arrangements

When it comes to boarding, just about any arrangement you can imagine has been done. Some stables may work out reduced rates for owners who are willing to take on some chores, such as mucking out their own stalls. Some may offer work-exchange or working-student arrangements, which is when equestrian students do barn chores in exchange for reduced board or free lessons or training.

If you choose to offer these kinds of flexible arrangements for boarders, it’s important that all the responsibilities of both parties are outlined in the boarding contract. Those who don’t hold up their end of the arrangement will have to pay full board – or whatever the penalty is according to the contract.

Training and Instruction

Often combined with boarding facilities, training and instruction is another option for an equestrian business. Many equestrians will choose a boarding facility based on the option of an on-site instructor or horse trainer.

There are numerous paths to becoming a professional horse trainer or riding instructor. You don’t need a degree or certifications, in most cases, but you do need something to establish yourself as an authority. Typically, horse trainers and instructors have a track record of success in prominent horse show circuits or reputation for training champion horses.

If you don’t want to train or instruct yourself, you can hire an on-site trainer and instructor for your boarding clients. Ideally, the trainer and instructor should be specialized in a discipline, such as hunter/jumper or cutting.

Another option is subcontracting. In this arrangement, you may or may not provide an on-site trainer, but if you get a rider who prefers to work with their own trainer, they can pay for the use of the amenities like the indoor or outdoor arena.

In addition to on-site staff and subcontractors, many boarding facilities will bring in big-name trainers for clinics. The trainer has run of the facility for the time they’re scheduled, and students can book appointments for lessons. This is helpful for the riders, since the trainer comes to them, and they can work in the environment in which they and their horses are most comfortable.

Breeding Operation

Breeding horses is a diverse facet of equestrian business. Not for beginners to the horse world, breeding takes a lot of time, passion, and a gift for selecting solid breeding stock . Like breeding other animals, care must be taken to ensure that the foal crop is free of genetic illness and that the most desirable traits are passed through the generations.

Horse breeders are not “backyard breeders” bringing together their two mutts to sell the puppies. While that may happen, horse breeders usually focus on one pure breed and specialize in specific purposes like barrel racing, flat racing, or show jumping. They know the pedigrees of the stock inside and out, as well as what makes a horse a champion in their respective discipline.

In addition, breeding requires skill and comfort around horses. Both stallions and mares in heat can be difficult to handle, and a lot goes into the care or the breeding stock and bringing up the foals.

There are a few ways to approach a breeding operation, from boutique breeders to studding services to full-scale breeding operations. Many breeders get started by realizing an opportunity with their winning stallion or mare, or simply having a good eye for superior horses.

Full-Scale Breeding Operation

A breeding operation may be full-scale with on-site stallions, mares, and foals, as well as the necessary breeding areas and equipment. This is a big undertaking, since you’re providing land and stalls for your breeding stock and the foal crop.

One of the advantages to a full-scale breeding operation is that you can start small, however. Just a stallion and a few mares with a stable and some land can grow over the years to become dozens of horses on hundreds of acres.

Most full-scale breeding operations have their own breeding stock that’s either already owned or purchased (the latter is more expensive!). Owners may hold back some foals for future breeding, meaning they’re not offered for sale, while the others are sold for profit. These operations may also bring in new mares or stallions to diversify the crop over the years.

Usually, a full-scale breeding operation will use hand-mating and artificial insemination for their own breeding stock. They may offer stud services for artificial insemination, or they may bring an outside mare for studding.

One main difference between a breeding facility and other types of horse facilities is that it’s set up for breeding. There’s plenty of land and space for not only the current horses but the future ones as well. These facilities also have areas for hand-mating and insemination, veterinary equipment, studding, and separate pastures for individual stallions, mares, and weanlings or yearlings.

With purebred horses, there may be an additional registration process with the breed registry. The process can vary, but horses may be eligible for registration and branding that allows them to compete in breed-specific competitions and increases their value.

Some owners maximize profits by studding out their champion stallion, giving them income without running a full breeding operation. When a champion racehorse or show horse finishes its career on a high note, the owner can use that notoriety to offer the horse’s semen for a fee.

They simply offer the material to impregnate the mare, and the mare’s owner is responsible for the rest. Because the work involved in studding is less intensive than a full breeding operation, people may keep and stud a stallion at a riding or boarding facility instead of a dedicated breeding ranch.

Some studs can command fees of thousands of dollars for semen, and a male horse produces enough to pair with over 100 mares. Of course, if the stud produces a bunch of duds, the fee can plummet – it’s a gamble.

Mares have long gestation periods – typically 11 months – which is a long period to be out of commission. Pregnancy also carries risk that can lead to loss of life or loss of use. Some owners who want to breed their mare prefer to avoid this risk by using a surrogate mare, or recipient mare.

The time period in which a mare can carry a foal safely and successfully is also limited. If the mare can’t take time off of showing for breeding, surrogacy allows for multiple pregnancies from different mares in a given year while she continues to show. It also allows the mare’s owner to breed her to multiple stallions at the same time to produce a range of foals.

Reproduction is done through artificial insemination with an embryo transfer, sperm injection, and semen freezing, shipping, and storage. It’s a long process, but comparatively shorter than having a mare out of the show circuit.

The mare’s owner is responsible for the stud fee and associated costs, the cost of artificial insemination, and the veterinary care for the mare.

Also, like a stud, the surrogate mare may be part of a larger breeding facility or simply kept at a boarding or riding stable. For owners of mares that aren’t suitable for breeding or showing at a high level, surrogacy is a way to make use of their optimal breeding years.

Riding Clinics

Riding clinics are intensive training sessions that take place with a qualified equestrian instructor or trainer. Typically, these clinicians have an accomplished equestrian career in a specific discipline that qualifies them to command a high fee for training sessions.

If you’re a trainer or instructor yourself, you can provide clinics on a travel tour. Students would book appointments in advance to ensure that your time, travel, and expenses are worthwhile. In fact, some of the biggest-name trainers often have waiting lists, applications, and cut-off dates to book lessons.

With this arrangement, you would pay for use of the facility and its amenities for your clinic. Often, the students who attend will be from the same facility, but they may also travel to attend. For accomplished equestrians, this can be lucrative.

Conversely, if you own a riding stable or boarding facility, you can offer clinics. It will not only make your facility more appealing to clients, but it gives you an extra source of income. The catch is that you would need to seek and find the right opportunities.

When you bring in clinicians, it’s important that they teach the discipline that appeals to most of your clients. There is some overlap, such as a show jumper participating in a dressage clinic, bringing a clinician in English equitation won’t be appealing to a stable full of barrel racers.

Tourist Ranches

Tourist ranches, also known as dude ranches or guest ranches, are a type of vacation property that has horses for guest use. These are all-inclusive experiences that combine hospitality and horsemanship.

Dude ranches have been around since the 19 th century. Tourists enjoy the pioneer experience and nostalgia without risking their health and welfare. Many began in the West and offered activities to indulge in the “cowboy” life, but now, they come in a wide variety.

Ranches run the gamut from romantic Wild-West cattle ranches to luxurious resorts with top-notch amenities like tennis courts and heated swimming pools and spas. The beauty of them is that you can make the ranch what works best for you and the location.

For example, some ranches offer adventure experiences like hiking, whitewater rafting, cattle herding, target shooting, and fishing. Others operate similarly to a luxurious resort, but include horses and horse-related activities like trail rides. In either case, they include cabins or other accommodation for guests on the property, as well as services like dining and housekeeping.

These destinations are particularly appealing to families with kids. Often, activities are designed to keep the kids entertained, such as campfire sing-alongs and petting zoos. Many ranches have themes that inform the whole experience, such as ranches that allow guests to participate in antiquated activities like churning butter or milking goats.

The different types of guest ranches may include:

Working Dude Ranch

These types of ranches are working cattle or sheep operations. Horseback riding excursions may be reserved for those with experience with cowhorses, though some ranches may offer different excursions based on skills and experience.

This is the most authentic of the ranch experiences. Visitors expect – and want – hard work and hands-on activities. Assisting in herding cattle, grooming horses, and mucking stalls may be part of the experience.

A basic dude ranch of guest ranch caters to visitors looking for horseback riding. These are the more romanticized Wild-West ranches that teach guests the “cowboy” life and allow them to take part in iconic experiences like lassoing, driving cattle, and camping out with horses under the stars.

Generally, visitors are looking more for activities directly related to cowboy culture and fantasy, not necessarily general ranch chores or menial labor. They want to ride and rodeo, not muck stalls.

Resort Ranch

Resort ranches are the luxury ranches that offer upscale accommodations and amenities. The overall style may be frontier or working ranch, but the rooms, amenities, food, and entertainment are more like a luxury resort or cruise.

Typically, resort ranches offer a more diverse array of activities and facilities. Along with the expected ranch amenities, they may have a pool, fitness center, spa, childcare facility, fine dining, a bar, and an entertainment venue. This is more of a “glamping” ranch experience than a true frontier west experience.

Hunting Ranches

Though less common, areas with desirable game may have hunting ranches. They operate similarly to a working ranch or dude ranch, but they include hunting in the activities separate from the horseback riding.

Depending on the location, the hunting may include elk, moose, bears, or deer. Some ranches may offer captive-bred exotic game for trophy hunters, such as antelope. The high tag fee and hunting guides support the care and proliferation of a rare or threatened species.

These are the basic types of ranches, but they may combine elements of each other or offer something unique. Ultimately, the common thread is horseback riding. Whether it’s an organized trail ride, lessons, or a cattle drive, guest ranches center the experience around the horses.

There’s a lot to consider when starting a guest ranch, however. Depending on the location, it may only be able to operate seasonally. You also have to simultaneously run a hospitality business and an equestrian business.

Horse-Related Adult Retreats

Wellness or nature retreats are popular among adults. Whether focused on meditation, yoga, getting in touch with nature, women-only, or any other type of theme, these adult retreats may include equestrian activities.

The retreat may be reserved for experienced riders or beginners, but they have a theme that informs all of the activities. Journaling, meditation, life-coaching training, group therapy, nature walks, creating vision boards, and beach yoga are among the types of activities that retreats offer.

As far as the equestrian activities, it depends on the experience level of the participants. A retreat may teach basic horsemanship for beginners to horse yoga to advanced activities like team penning and barrel racing.

Like running a dude ranch, starting an equine retreat for adults means balancing the demands of a horse business and a tourist experience.

Horse Rescue

A horse rescue is a non-profit organization that cares for abused, starving, or abandoned horses. Like other rescues, horse rescues are often no-kill, volunteer-based organizations that provide a safe environment for horses, care for their basic needs, and educate the public about their welfare.

Running a horse rescue or shelter may be born of passion, but it needs to be approached like a business. Horses are expensive to care for, especially in a rehabilitation environment, and the IRS has specific requirements for non-profit status and donations.

Another aspect to consider is that rescues are run as non-profits, so the profitability isn’t widely known. Generally, these are not lucrative businesses.

Horse Leasing

Horse lovers may dream of having a horse of their own, but it’s not an option for every equestrian. For riders who are just starting out or lack the ability to buy a horse of their own, leasing a horse is an excellent alternative.

If you own a horse suitable for another rider, leasing gives you income for the privilege of allowing your horse to be ridden. You maintain ownership, care, and financial responsibility for the horse, but you’re giving a rider a chance to learn and prepare for eventual horse ownership.

For the rider, they essentially “rent” the horse and take on fewer financial responsibilities – think of it like renting an apartment vs. buying a home. If they decide they no longer want to ride or they move, they’re free of the responsibility of selling or relocating the horse.

This is an ideal arrangement for beginner riders. If they bought a horse, they may outgrow it or lose interest in the sport. Leasing acts as a “stepping-stone” in their riding career.

There are numerous types of horse lease arrangements:

Partial Lease

A partial lease, or half lease, provides the privilege of riding a horse on certain days of the week. The owner still has riding privileges, so both parties are basically “sharing” the horse. With this arrangement, the horse typically remains on the premises instead of being moved to another facility.

Most partial leases offer the ability to ride three or four days a week for a fixed monthly fee. The expenses for veterinary care or farrier services may be split, or they may fall on one party. These arrangements typically run month-to-month, rather than a long-term contract.

With a full lease, only one rider has the privilege of riding the horse. This is the closest to horse ownership for the rider, since they can choose when and how often they can ride without working around another’s schedule.

Some full lease arrangements permit the rider to move the horse to a different facility, while others require the horse stay on the owner’s premises. Full leases also come with more responsibilities and costs, such as veterinary or farrier fees and horse insurance. Still, when it comes to making decisions about care, the owner is in control.

Other Lease Arrangements

Like boarding, leasing can take on many forms. Facilities may work with lesson leases to use horses for students instead of a partial board arrangement. Quarter leases are also an option for casual riders who only want to ride a few times a week and don’t want to pay for unused riding time.

No matter the arrangement, it’s vital that all aspects of the lease are in writing. A lease is similar to other types of rentals, so the arrangement should include the terms to protect both parties.

Stable Merchandising

If you already have a breeding, riding, boarding, or training facility, merchandising is a great way to bring in extra income and boost brand exposure.

Stable merchandise is branded gear with the stable’s logo and brand colors. Prominent equestrian facilities often sell branded merchandise like zip-ups, custom dress shirts, hats, tote bags, notebooks, tank tops, socks, saddle pads, and travel mugs. These products are relevant and practical for the client and promote the facility for minimal cost.

Professional Equestrian

A professional equestrian is an elite career . The competition can be fierce, but a rider with the skill, talent, and qualifications can make a solid income. You can work from your own facility, or your business could be your personal brand.

Professional equestrians are paid to ride and show other people’s horses. If you’ve ever watched a competition, you may notice that some riders compete multiple times or in multiple events with different mounts. That’s because they’re paid to show an owner’s horse.

Owners want the best riders for their horses. They want the horses to get noticed and develop a name for themselves, which comes into play when they try to sell or breed them. Sometimes, older owners no longer ride, but they want their horse to compete and pay a professional to showcase them.

Professional equestrians also train and teach. Usually, a professional equestrian does a combination of all three, but within the same discipline or related disciplines. Professionals also have experience in other aspects of horse care and management.

The biggest challenge with becoming a professional equestrian is building your personal brand. You have to compete at high levels and win to make a name for yourself and cultivate a demand for your riding and training skills.

Horse Transport

Investing in a horse trailer, and a truck to pull it, and learning the ins and outs of driving the outfit is overwhelming to many horse owners. Offering horse transport services can be a lucrative business.

Horse owners may need transportation to shows, but you also have the option of offering long-distance hauls for owners who are moving or showing on the national level. Owners may need transportation to university veterinary hospitals or when they’re transferring to a different facility as well.

Keep in mind that the requirements to transport a horse a few hours away are vastly different from the requirements to transport them across multiple states over long periods. For example, horses on long-distance trips need a trailer with a box stall and frequent stops for water and stretching. You may also need to develop a network of short-term boarding facilities for overnight stops.

Transporting horses doesn’t take as much horse knowledge as some other types of horse businesses. The start-up costs can be significant, however, especially if you’re trying to get multiple outfits. You’ll also need liability insurance and written policies about how horses will be handled, what happens in the case of injury, and how clients will be notified about transportation status.

Local laws and regulations apply to horse transport in a state, city, and county, however. It’s important to speak with an attorney to ensure you’re doing everything by the book.

If you own a riding stable or boarding facility, you can invest in trucks and trailers to transport your clients to shows or veterinary appointments. This is usually an additional fee that can provide extra income during the show season, and you could offer your services to other horse owners in the area.

Professional Grooming

Horses need impeccable grooming for horse shows, and that’s where professional grooms come in. Children and busy adults may lack the time or knowledge to groom their own horses properly and pay for professional grooming services.

Professional grooming may include specific tasks like braiding the mane and tail for shows, but some grooms perform the entire process of bathing, brushing, picking out hooves, and tacking up, only to hand the horse off to the rider. Then, when the ride is complete, the rider hands the horse back to the groom to be walked, untacked, and rinsed off before being put away.

Grooms may also have the responsibility of cleaning tack, packing supplies for a horse show, and assisting riders with barn chores at the showgrounds.

Being a professional groom has many avenues. You can be a dedicated groom for one rider and their horse – or horses – or you can work with clients within the same facility. Owners of riding stables can offer grooming services, either themselves or from hired support staff.

Finally, there’s the option to run your own grooming business. You may begin by grooming on your own, but you can scale your business by taking on more grooms to handle clients and adopting a more managerial role.

Horse Stable Cleaning Services

The chores can add up in a facility with multiple horses. Not all boarding facility owners want to handle all the chores themselves, so they hire horse stable cleaning services.

Horse stable cleaning services may include a variety of tasks, such as mucking stalls, power-washing walls, sweeping or power-washing aisleways, racking arenas, spreading manure, scrubbing feed and water buckets, and tidying up the feed room or tack room.

Similar to grooming, you can take on work for specific clients in one facility or offer your services to multiple facilities. As you grow, you can take on more clients by hiring employees and operating a full cleaning service.

Pasture and Facility Care

Horse turnout and the grounds of a stable need maintenance like anything else. If you enjoy handiwork and landscaping, pasture and facility care is an in-demand service.

Busy stable owners are inclined to pay for professionals to maintain their outdoor areas. Some of the tasks may include inspecting and fixing turnout fences, removing weeds, dragging pasture, removing rocks, and filling holes.

Within the facility, this service may include identifying and repairing plumbing problems, fixing damaged stalls or doors, replacing worn fittings, and fixing cracked or damaged concrete. You may also be asked to update or install features or amenities.

Stable maintenance workers may stay at one facility or they may offer services to multiple facilities in the area. As with grooming and stable chores, you can expand by hiring more people to serve more clients.

Manure Removal Services

Facilities that have neither the land nor equipment to spread manure may hire a manure removal service to take care of waste. This is out of the purview of most local waste management services.

Manure can pile up quickly, so manure removal services are a must for both residential and commercial horse facilities. You can provide regular pickup or on-call pickup to haul manure away.

Along with the business requirements, waste removal may require additional state and local licensing or permits.

A tack shop can be a viable business on its own or a valuable revenue stream for a boarding or riding stable. This is essentially a retail store, so you have plenty of options for how to approach it.

Ultimately, it depends on your clientele. Boutique tack shops with high-end products and branded merchandise can do very well with brand loyalty, while a large and diverse tack shop offers a range of products to suit everyone.

You could also offer used or consignment pieces, such as used saddles and pre-owned show jackets or boots, to help clients save on products and give their old stuff new life.

In addition, you can travel to nearby shows with just a few limited necessities. It’s inevitable that a rider will forget a ratcatcher, hoof pick, or hair ribbon, causing a panic for their parents. Having these basic essentials in stock at the showgrounds almost guarantees sales and builds your brand over time.

What to Consider When Starting a Business in the Equestrian Industry

Like any business, starting an equestrian business is a big undertaking. There’s a lot to consider before you make the leap. You have to act like a business owner, not a horse enthusiast .

Time Commitment

Small business owners work 50 or 60 hours a week . You may be excited at the idea of spending your day around horses, but remember that a lot of the work involved in running an equestrian business won’t actually be spent on the horses.

An equestrian business is still a business. Much of your time will be spent handling work that’s more or less the same with every business – accounting, marketing, etc. Unless you hire or outsource that work, it falls on you.

Then you also have to take on the actual horse stuff. If you open a boarding facility, that means mucking stalls, feeding horses multiple times a day, and filling water buckets. If you open a big facility with 50 horses and minimal staff, that’s a lot of hours and balancing your workload and personal life.

Equestrian businesses need multiple contracts to operate legally. Without them, you and your business may not be protected.

Operating agreements: LLCs need to have operating agreements that determine how distributions and losses are shared, how the business is managed and taxed, and more.

Website contracts: If you have a website, you need these contracts for legal protection – a privacy policy, terms and conditions, and clear information at the footer that links the aforementioned contracts, your copyright symbol, and a disclaimer.

Equestrian businesses may need additional contracts, including:

Boarding agreement: If you’re boarding animals on your property, you must have a boarding agreement with the animal’s owner that details the timeframe and general terms of the arrangement.
Liability release waivers: If you allow anyone to ride your horse, whether one time or for a lease or lesson agreement, you need a liability release waiver to protect you in the event of an accident.
Bill of sale: If you’re selling animals, a bill of sale document is necessary to outline the details of the terms of purchase, the animal’s health, and the terms of the transfer. This is essentially a proof of purchase.
Breeding contract: If you’re breeding, you need a stringent breeding contract that includes the parties involved, the time of breeding, the fees and expenses, any health or condition guarantees, rebreeding rights, liability clauses, and more.
Transport: Transporting a horse is a big liability issue. Accidents can occur on the road or a horse can be stolen, and the business needs a contract for transporting animals for someone else.
Employment: If you’re hiring support staff for your equestrian business, you will need employment contracts for each type of employee.

Cities and counties plan to shape the character of communities with zoning and regulations. There’s no requirement for local governments to have similar land use ordinances or planning processes, even in the same county, so it’s important for you to contact the local offices to determine the laws and ordinances that apply to a commercial equestrian property.

Local zoning ordinances and codes can apply to everything from boarding and riding horses to providing lessons and designing and building stables and buildings. Avoid headaches in the future by doing your due diligence before you get the ball rolling on your business.

Once you’ve mapped out the ideas, starting your business is much simpler. The specifics will depend on the type of business you choose, but here are general steps to starting your own equestrian business.

Know Your Market

It’s not enough to just love horses to start an equestrian business. You have to know who your clients are. Without that, you could approach everything the wrong way for the people you’re trying to attract, and you’re dead in the water.

Marketing research is crucial before starting a business. Before you begin with a business plan, marketing strategy, or shopping for horse property, do some research. Check out comparable businesses in the area and see how they operate and what their clients expect, so you can plan accordingly.

Find Your Profit Motive

Often, people get into horse businesses because they’re pursuing a passion. While that’s not entirely wrong, it’s vital to pursue a business for its profit motive. If you want to “do what you love” without concern for money, you’re talking about a hobby, not a business.

A profit motive is the desire for financial gain and maximized profits. This is motivation to innovate and take risks for economic gain.

Worse yet, if you can’t find a realistic way that you can make money with your equestrian business, you may be viewed by the IRS as a tax shelter. You could be subject to an audit, and if you can’t show how you’ll earn a profit, then it’s a hobby and things can get messy with penalties and interest. Always find a profit motive and you can avoid this hassle.

Develop a Business Plan

Many business owners venture into business without a solid business plan. The business plan may be the most important step, since this can show you if your business is destined to succeed or fail.

The business plan doesn’t need to be overly formal or designed like a presentation with fancy graphics and statistics – unless you’re looking for a significant loan or investor. It’s essentially for you to analyze your business idea, costs, and revenue to see if you can create a profitable business.

Do your research and include information like:

The size and location of the market
The competition
Fixed and variable costs
Market availability

With these numbers, you can forecast how much money your business can make against your expenses each week, month, and year.

Structure Your Business

All businesses need a well-formed business plan that includes market analysis and evaluation of income potential and likely expenses. Is there a need for your business in the current market? Will you have potential clients? Can you make your business profitable?

The more research and effort you put into this in the beginning, the more stability and security you’ll have moving forward.

You also need to determine what business structure is the best for your needs and protects your personal interests from liability. Whether you choose a sole proprietorship, LLC, or corporation will also determine the record-keeping and tax requirements .

Know Your Insurance Requirements

Whether it’s required in your state or not, insurance is a key component of an equestrian business. Horses and equestrian activities are inherently dangerous, and you may need multiple types of insurance to make sure you’re covered.

General liability insurance, or small business liability insurance, provides coverage for claims that result from normal business activities. You may also need commercial property insurance, which protects your business’s physical assets, such as a stable, from fire, burst pipes, storms, vandalism, theft, and explosions.

In addition, you may need liability release waivers . These agreements outline the risk the rider is taking when they ride your horse or ride in your facility. Depending on the type of business you have, these liability waivers may be general or specific to the activity.

Determine Fixed and Variable Costs

At the end of the day, businesses need to be profitable to succeed. Being profitable means you’ve covered all your expenses and you have money left over to pay yourself and continue putting money into the business.

To start, list all the expenses your business will have. This may be trickier than you think, especially when you consider fixed costs and variable costs.

Fixed costs will remain the same regardless of how much you produce. These include your rental or mortgage payments and insurance. Variable costs are costs that change based on the amount of output you produce. So, if you have a boarding facility and bring in more horses, the expenses you’d see change would include labor costs and feed, hay, and water costs.

Identify the Unique Selling Proposition

A lot of businesses fail because they can’t differentiate themselves from their competitors enough to get a foothold in the market. Whatever your business idea is, you have to find a way to be different.

With an equestrian facility, that can be more challenging. You could be surrounded by competitors, so think about what you have to offer that’s different. Maybe your stable caters to a different discipline, or you offer a more down-to-earth alternative to the snobbier, upscale facilities nearby.

Come up with reasons that your company is different from everyone else and why a client should give you their business. Once you have this, it can inform the rest of your marketing strategy.

Develop a Marketing and Branding Strategy

Marketing is a must in the modern business world. No matter how great your equestrian business is , without marketing, no one will know about it.

Marketing strategy starts with a goal. Sure, your overarching goal is to make money, but focus on goals for your campaigns like boosting brand awareness, getting more prospects, or increasing your audience on social media pages.

Then, consider your audience. Think about who they are and what appeals to them. If your audience is diverse, you can segment it and deliver more targeted campaigns. For example, you might take a different approach to attract kids for riding lessons compared to their parents. Creating segments ensures that you’re keeping your message tailored to the audience.

From there, develop ideas for your campaigns that reflect your brand. Start small with just a few marketing channels, such as email, social media, and paid search ads. Test and tweak your campaigns regularly to determine what’s working and find areas for improvement. Once you get the hang of it, you can scale your campaigns to more channels and broader audiences.

Also, consider marketing more than just your business. If you have a riding stable, think about marketing your instructor or trainer as well as the facility. If you’re breeding, you’ll need marketing campaigns for your studs, mares, and foals.

Once you have your business up and running, raking in clients, you can think about how you can grow your business to become more profitable.

Content Marketing

Content is a very useful and versatile tool in the equestrian industry. Horse owners and riders are always looking for information, and there’s so much to choose from.

You can promote content about your business, your background, and your employees. Some equestrian businesses are successful with highlighting professional riders or trainers in features, sharing stories about horses throughout history, or writing humorous articles about success and failure in the competition ring.

For niche businesses, the content can be a little narrower. For example, a professional grooming business could write content with tips and tricks for braiding, the new trends for horse show style, and guides for how to properly body clip a horse.

It’s important to be creative and understand what your audience is looking for. If you deal with beginner riders, it’s best to keep the content introductory and basic to support learning. If you’re working with high-level professionals, avoid simple topics like “how to tack up a horse.”

The way content promotes a business is by putting it in front of the audience in a less intrusive way than an ad. When a client searches for information in Google, such as “things to look for in a professional horse trainer,” they will see your content. If what they read offers value, they may seek out more content from you or look into your site and what you have to offer.

Over time, prospective clients come to view you as an authority. Then, when they need similar services, your business is top of mind.

Social Media

Virtually all consumers expect brands to be on social media, even an equestrian brand. Building an online following takes time and dedication, but it can have a significant impact on your sales and exposure.

Start by creating business accounts on the social media platforms that contain most of your audience. Share content regularly that’s appropriate for the platform, such as short video clips for TikTok and industry-focused articles on LinkedIn.

As people like or comment, be sure to interact with them and answer any questions they may have. You’ll increase the engagement of your followers, encouraging more shares and exposure to a larger audience.

Affiliate Marketing

Content not only benefits you with more authority and exposure, but it’s a wealth of opportunity for affiliate marketing. This type of marketing is performance-based and rewards businesses for traffic or leads they generate.

For an equestrian business, you have numerous products that you can review and promote in your content. For example, talking about a new hoof oil in a blog post about hoof care encourages visitors to click on the link, driving them to the affiliate site and earning you money in the process.

Email Marketing

Despite the rise of other marketing techniques, email marketing is still one of the most effective ways to get your message out there. People subscribe to an email list, so you have the benefit of an audience you already know is interested in what you have to share.

Your email campaigns can include promoted content or helpful tips and tricks for your clients, product recommendations, event reminders, updates, and more – it all depends on your business model.

To gain subscribers, create gated content for your site. This is high-value, downloadable content that subscribers can access by providing their name and email. It has to be something they can’t get elsewhere, however, such as an in-depth interview or case study.

Referral Program

Referral programs work a lot like word-of-mouth recommendations. You set up a program that incentivizes your clients or non-competing businesses to refer people from their network to your business. In exchange, one of both clients get a free gift, discount, or special perk.

While the incentive doesn’t have to be expensive, it must be worthwhile. Branded merchandise, a discount on services for the referrer and the referred, or gift cards are all good incentives to recommend your business to other people.

Diversification

Equestrian businesses are subject to the state of the economy. As a luxury, horses, riding lessons, or extra services may be among the first to leave out of the budget for many people in tight times.

Diversifying or expanding your services creates more opportunities for income streams and gives you some cushion for lean periods. Boarding facilities have a wealth of options to diversify, including offering short-term boarding, renting the facility for parties or events, offering transport for shows, or adding grooming or training services to the offer.

You can get creative when coming up with new income streams. Selling equestrian products, creating your own branded merchandise, affiliate marketing, leasing horses, and horse photography are all options to inspire you.

At some point, your business will grow past the point where you have time to handle everything on your own. You may want that control, but that’s a fast track to burnout and making mistakes that can harm your reputation in the long run.

If things seem overwhelming, consider hiring to support your business’s growth. You can start with stable hands or other support staff, or keep those hands-on activities yourself and outsource your boring business tasks like accounting and marketing.

With businesses like professional grooming or facility maintenance, you can grow easily and accommodate more clients by hiring employees to take on your overflow work. The biggest aspect of this is maintaining your standards across the board. You spent a lot of time building your reputation and client loyalty, so make sure your employees are up to those same standards.

Is Your Business Scalable?

Some equestrian businesses are scalable and others are not. The idea of scalability is that whether your fixed costs are high or low, if you can add a significant number of customers without increasing your costs proportionally, the business is scalable and becomes more profitable as it grows.

Boarding, training, instruction, and breeding are not the most scalable businesses. As you take on more clients, your costs for food, water, etc. will generally increase proportionally. Conversely, a boarding facility can offset these costs by having more paying tenants, which cover more of the cost of the rent or mortgage on the facility itself.

Consider if your business is scalable, and if it isn’t, how can you diversify what you offer to gain more growth potential?

Frequently Asked Questions About Starting a Business in the Equestrian Industry

Is the horse business profitable.

With the right planning and research, any business can be profitable. It’s less about horses than it is about being prepared and educated to develop the most successful business plan.

Where Can I Find Equestrian Businesses for Sale?

Real estate listings and websites often provide both hobby and commercial equestrian properties. You can search anywhere you’re looking to go and compare the information about the land size, existing structures, zoning, taxes, and more.

Are There Equestrian Business Awards?

The United Kingdom has Equestrian Business Awards to recognize small equestrian businesses and their care for animals and contributions to the economy. These awards include veterinarians, farriers, equine dentists, instructors, riding schools, grooms, and any other equine professional.

What Should You Know Before Buying an Equestrian Business?

Few types of property or businesses require as much knowledge as those related to horses. Before you buy an equestrian business, be sure to thoroughly evaluate the property and land to ensure it’s efficient and safe for horses to avoid future headaches.

Are There Equestrian Business Apps?

There are plenty of apps designed to help equestrian business owners succeed. Apps like CRIO help facility owners and managers track boarding, training, and breeding, while the Horse Report System offers performance tracking for equine athletes to monitor body condition, training, and health. Stable Secretary is a helpful tool for barn management and tracks horse health sheets, breeding records, and payments.

What Is the Definition of an Equestrian Business?

An equestrian business is a broad term that includes businesses that focus on horses, horsemanship, horse care, and equestrian sports or leisure activities.

Starting and running a business is no small feat. When you’re starting an equestrian business, you have the added legalities, care, and challenges of horses added to the mix. This may all seem overwhelming, but as long as you have the passion, y ou can make your equestrian business a reality !

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Horse Boarding Business Plan Sample

Aug.07, 2018

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Horse boarding business plan for your own stable

Do you want to start a horse boarding business? Well, it can prove highly profitable for you, if you have a prior experience with horses. A Global Horse Population report in 2006, stated that the United States has the most number of horses in the world; about 9.5 million and many equine owners lack the time and space required for proper horse care.

But before starting a horse boarding business , you have to make a comprehensive and effective business plan. For your guidance, we are giving here the sample business plan of a horse boarding startup named, ‘Chris Equestrian’.

Executive Summary

2.1 the horse boarding business.

Chris Equestrian will be located in New Jersey, at a ten-minute drive from the Jersey Shore. The business will be owned by ‘Chris Sandler’ and will be started on a land of 56 acres initially.

Chris hasn’t much experience in dealing with horses, but he will obtain the services of top equestrians and horse trainers before he start horse boarding business .

Management of Horse Boarding Real Estate

Chris Equestrian will be managed by Chris, yet experienced and licensed workers will be hired for barn help and horse training.

2.3 Customers of Equestrian Center

We will be serving in one of the richest locations of the United States, with an average household income of $354,479, so our customers will be the people who won’t hesitate to spend on quality services for their pets.

2.4 Target of Horse Boarding Facility

The company aims to provide the highest quality service to its customers and become the best horse boarding center in New Jersey.

Company Summary

3.1 company owner.

Chris Sandler, an MBA from the University of Cambridge, will be the owner of Chris Equestrian. Chris is a wealthy landlord in New Jersey and hasn’t much experience with horses, yet he has obtained the services of expert equestrian riders and horse trainers for operating his business.

3.2 Why the Horse Boarding Business is being started

Chris has become one of the wealthiest landlords of New Jersey after receiving his share from the legacy. To invest his money, he has found horse boarding business the most amusing and the most profitable business too. He doesn’t want to limit his business to just a boarding center, he is looking forward to the years when he initiates a polo ground besides, his boarding center.

3.3 How the Horse Boarding Business will be started

Chris Equestrian will be a registered and licensed horse boarding center with startup land area of about 56 acres. Chris has obtained the services of a contracting firm which is nearly half-way in turning that vast area into a beautiful pasture, mowed ground, jumpers, rings, and shed barns with staunch borders.

Chris has planned every aspect of his business wisely, with the help of professionals. He has even employed a team to write him a profound business plan on how to start a horse boarding business and to make a record of horse boarding business expenses for meeting all the possible financial activities such as grooming products, vaccines, washing equipment, food and other supplies.

The detailed start-up requirements, expenses, total assets, investments, as forecasted by experts, is given below:

Services for customers

Chris Equestrian is aimed to provide a trustee center where you can leave and take your horses anytime. After a great research on how to start a horse boarding facility , Chris has decided to provide the following services to his customers. If you are searching for how to start a horse farm business , you can take help from here.

Daily Care: Our daycare services include feeding your horses, cleaning their stalls and regulating their physique by providing proper exercise.
Horse Training: Chris Equestrian also provide horse training service by expert trainers, for the people who procure at least our 6-month membership.
Veterinary Services: When your horses are in Chris Equestrian, you are relieved about the medication and veterinary services of your horses. We have hired the top veterans of our county for taking care of your horse.
Horse Riding: We have a large land for you to come anytime and enjoy riding your horse through our maintained pastures and jumpers’ rings. If you have difficulty in riding, our trainers will help and train you too.

Free transportation will be provided to transport horses from your location to our center. Charges on our services will be based on the number of days, you want to board your horses. Extra payment will be charged if you want an extra-large barn house. However, we’ll provide a 10% discount on 6-months and 15% on 12-months membership.

Marketing Analysis of horse boarding business

The most deciding part of the success of your business is incorporating accurate marketing analysis in your horse boarding business plan . If you are going to start a horse boarding business , you must analyze in your horse boarding facility business plan whether the market has the potential of your startup or not, or how’ll you cater your business with a long list of competitors.

Well, you can have a help from horse boarding business plan examples available online or can take help from this horse boarding business plan free of cost. But it is advised to acquire the services of professionals to make you a horse farm business plan template , like Chris who has hired experts to write a horse farm business plan according to his expenses and needs.

5.1 Market Trends

According to IBISWorld, the horse equestrian and related businesses are growing at a rate of 1.1% per year. There are currently more than 174 thousand such businesses running in the United States and are responsible for employing more than 210,225 people generating a revenue of $8 billion annually. These figures show that it will prove beneficial for you to open up a horse boarding center, especially in the regions of well-off housing communities where people are in dire need for some facility to take care of their animals.

5.2 Marketing Segmentation

The success or failure of any startup depends upon how thoroughly you know your potential customers. By adding a part of marketing segmentation you will help yourself in gaining and maintaining customers. Our experts have claimed the following categories to be our potential customers:

The detailed marketing segmentation of our target audience is as follows:

5.2.1 Individual Households: The biggest category of our customers will be formed by the residents living in New Jersey. Most people require a guidance on taking care and training of their animals or a place where they can leave their animals anytime. As we are in an area where people have high incomes and they don’t hesitate to spend a large money on quality services, so our boarding services will be availed much by them.

5.2.2 Horse Dealers: The next category of our customers will be the horse dealers near our vicinity, who’ll need our services of training and grooming their horses. Although there are not many, but we’ll offer special packages and free transportation facilities to attract them.

5.2.3 Animal Shelters: There are more than 3500 animal shelters in the United States for accommodating stray or abandoned animals. Such shelters also need horse boarding centers for the training and medication of stray horses.

The detailed market analysis of our potential customers is given in the following table:

5.3 Business Target

Our target is to provide the best and the most trusted place for people to leave their horses with us. We aim at balancing our costs of startup with our sales within the six months of launch. Our target is to expand our business, buy nearby land and open up a polo ground just after the two years of launch.

5.4 Product Pricing

We have priced our services at the similar rates as our competitors, as people of our vicinity don’t compromise dollars over the quality, but we ensure you that we’ll provide the best services in town. Our prices for horse stalls are $590.00 a month for a regular box stall and $630.00 a month for an extra-large stall. Besides, we have different packages for our membership.

The pet industry is one of the few industries which have seen a consistent increase in revenue.

Before starting horse boarding business , Chris has defined the ways he will use for promoting his sales. If you are formulating your sales strategy for business , you can take help from this sample business plan of Chris Equestrian on how to run a horse boarding business .

6.1 Competitive Analysis

Chris Equestrian will have to face a lot of competitors; however, our unique competitive aspects will lead us through the way. Our competitive edge will be our better quality and luxurious services within the same rates as that of our competitors with 24-hour on-site monitoring. We are having the largest land area in the whole county with a full course of jumps for horse riding. Lastly, we will offer exceptional customer service where we will treat our customers and their horses with extreme respect and love respectively.

6.2 Sales Strategy

We’ll advertise our new startup by the following means:

We’ll send introductory letters to the lords of New Jersey.
We’ll have a big party on the day of inauguration marked by the horse riding and horse dance show.
We’ll provide free transport for horses from your location to our center.
We’ll give free barn rooms to first ten customers.

6.3 Sales Forecast

By analyzing our market segmentation strategy, our experts have forecasted the following sales on the yearly basis which are summarized in the column charts.

The detailed information about the sales forecast, total unit sales, total sales is given in the following table.

6.4 Sales Monthly

6.5 sales yearly, personnel plan.

After knowing how to start a horse breeding business , the next step is to decide your staff and make a personnel plan.

7.1 Horse Boarding Facility Staff

Chris Equestrian will be the manager himself and will hire the following people initially.

2 Accountants to maintain financial records.
2 Sales and Marketing Executives for dealing with corporate businesses, horse dealers etc.
5 Workers for performing various tasks such as washing, feeding, and grooming the horses
7 Workers to maintain the facility and for doing its routine cleaning
2 Drivers for transportation
2 Vets for medication
2 Lawn-mowers for maintaining the ground and pasture
5 Expert horse trainers
3 Equestrians to teach beginners
2 Salesperson to operate products store

7.2 Average Salary of Employees

The following table shows the forecasted data about employees and their salaries for next three years.

Highly Efficient Service

I am incredibly happy with the outcome! Alex and his team are highly efficient professionals with a diverse bank of knowledge!

Financial Plan

In your horse breeding business plan , you must develop your financial plan very wisely, as it will form the basis if you want to expand your business. You should hire professionals for estimating that you can balance horse boarding business profit and your investments. The professional business plan writers can give you many profitable horse business ideas and can guide you on how to earn more and more from your business.

However, we are providing you the sample business plan of Chris Equestrian free of cost if you are not willing to spend money on hiring professionals.

8.1 Important Assumptions

The company’s financial projections are forecasted on the basis of following assumptions. These assumptions are quite conservative and are also expected to show deviation but to a limited level such that the company’s major financial strategy will not be affected.

8.2 Brake-even Analysis

The following graph shows the company’s Brake-even Analysis

8.3 Projected Profit and Loss

The following charts show the company’s expected Profit and Loss situation on the monthly and yearly basis.

8.3.1 Profit Monthly

8.3.2 profit yearly, 8.3.3 gross margin monthly, 8.3.4 gross margin yearly.

The following table shows detailed information about profit and loss, and total cost of sales.

8.4 Projected Cash Flow

The following column diagram shows the projected cash flow.

The following table shows detailed data about pro forma cash flow, subtotal cash from operations, subtotal cash received, sub-total spent on operations, subtotal cash spent.

8.5 Projected Balance Sheet

The following projected balance sheet shows data about total current assets, total long-term assets, total assets, subtotal current liabilities, total liabilities, total capital, total liabilities and capital.

8.6 Business Ratios

The following table shows data about business ratios, ratio analysis, total assets, net worth.

Download Horse Boarding Business Plan Sample in pdf

OGS capital professional writers specialized also in themes such as business plan for horse education , dog boarding facility business plan , business plan for pet photography , dog day care business plan , starting a dog training business plan , business plan of dog walking service and many other business plans.

OGSCapital’s team has assisted thousands of entrepreneurs with top-rate business plan development, consultancy and analysis. They’ve helped thousands of SME owners secure more than $1.5 billion in funding, and they can do the same for you.

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Creating a Business Plan for a Horse Stable: Pro Tips

Starting on a journey to move your passion for horses into a thriving business is both exciting and overwhelming. This article is designed to guide you through crafting a business plan tailored for the equestrian industry.

Whether your dream is to open a boarding stable, run a riding stable, or other services, a well-thought-out business plan is your first step towards success. It not only serves as a blueprint for your business's future but also plays a crucial role in securing equestrian loans and horse farm financing. Let's dive into the why and how of creating a business plan.

Why You Need a Business Plan for Equestrian Ventures

A business plan is essential for any equestrian venture, serving as a vision reflection and a roadmap from concept to reality. It outlines your business goals, growth strategies, and the necessary steps for achievement, crucial for both planning and attracting lenders. This includes market research that shows a deep industry understanding and boosts your chances of getting equestrian loans and financing approval.

Indispensable for starting or expanding your horse business, a well-crafted business plan is the foundation for growth and a key to securing funding, making it not just helpful but essential for realizing your equestrian dreams.

Sources of Funding for Equine Facilities

Securing the necessary funding is a pivotal step in turning your equestrian business dream into reality. While the journey may seem daunting, understanding the variety of funding sources available can pave the way for a smoother ride. Here are some primary sources of funding for an equestrian business:

Equestrian Loans
Personal Savings
Credit Cards

To instill confidence in potential lenders and to assure them that your equestrian venture is not just a passion project but a well-planned, viable business, a comprehensive business plan is essential. It's your key to unlocking the doors to financing.

Benefits of Equine Loans

Equine loans offer several advantages for those looking to start or expand their equestrian business. For example, equine loans can provide funding for a wide range of needs, from purchasing horses and equipment to improving facilities or even buying land. By choosing a product like Legacy Ag Credit's equine loans , you're not just getting financial support; you're also gaining a partner who understands and believes in the potential of your equestrian business.

Crafting a Business Plan for a Horse Stable

Creating a business plan might seem like a daunting task, but it's a crucial step in ensuring the success of your equestrian venture. Here's a simplified roadmap to get you started:

Executive Summary: An overview of your business and its objectives.
Business Description: Detail the nature of your equestrian business and what sets it apart.
Market Analysis: Research and outline your target market, competition, and industry trends.
Organization and Management: Describe the structure of your business and the team behind it.
Services or Products Offered: Explain what you'll be offering to your clients.
Marketing Plan: How you plan to attract and retain customers.
Financial Projections: Provide detailed forecasts of your revenue, expenses, and profitability.
Funding Request: If seeking financing, specify the amount needed and how it will be used.

Understanding these components will prepare you for the next crucial step in your planning process.

What Kind of Horse Haven Are You Building?

Knowing the type of horse business, you aim to create is foundational to your success. This clarity helps in crafting a business plan that resonates with your vision and goals. Consider these questions as you brainstorm:

Are you starting from scratch or expanding an existing operation?
What services will you offer? (Boarding, training, breeding, etc.)
Who is your target clientele?
How will your business stand out in the competitive equestrian market?

Entrepreneurs should have a clear picture of the type of horse business they want to run, as this vision will be a guiding light in their business plan. This level of detail not only helps in securing equestrian business loans but also in laying a solid foundation for the future growth and success of your venture.

Understanding the Equestrian World

Finance underwriters, in particular, look for assurance that you understand the niche your business occupies. They want to see that you've done your homework on the equestrian industry, demonstrating awareness of its opportunities and challenges. This not only helps in securing equine financing but also in crafting a business model that is resilient and adaptable to market changes.

build your horse stable business plan based on the local audience

Meet Your Horse Fans

Knowing who your customers are allows you to tailor your services and customer experience to meet their expectations. It also helps in making informed decisions about your business, from the services you offer to the way you market them. This customer-centric approach not only enhances your business plan but also sets the stage for a loyal customer base. Some questions to ask:

Who are the horse enthusiasts in your area?
What are their needs, preferences, and spending habits?
Are they competitive riders, hobbyists, or families looking for riding lessons?

M aking Your Horse Farm the Best in Town

Understanding your competition is as important as knowing your customers. Identifying both direct and indirect competitors, as well as neighboring horse farms, gives you a clearer picture of the market landscape. This insight is invaluable for your business plan, helping you to pinpoint unique strengths and differentiators that set your venture apart.

Here are a few factors to consider:

Assess Competitor Offerings
Identify Gaps
Leverage Unique Features

Strategic Marketing for Equestrian Ventures

A strategic marketing plan is vital for equestrian businesses, emphasizing the four P's: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. Tailor these to the equestrian industry to ensure your venture thrives.

Product - Define your offerings, such as boarding, training, or breeding, to attract your ideal customers.
Price - Set competitive prices that reflect your services' value, considering your market and target demographic.
Place - Use your location's advantages, like accessibility or scenic beauty, to appeal to your market.
Promotion - Choose promotional methods, from digital marketing to traditional events, that best reach your audience.

Focusing on these elements helps create a marketing plan that not only engages your target audience but also boosts your business's visibility and appeal.

Applying for an equestrian loan to build a horse stable

S hort-Term Processes and Long-Term Goals

Running a horse business involves a balance between managing day-to-day tasks and keeping an eye on the horizon for long-term aspirations. The short-term processes, such as daily care of the horses, maintenance of the facilities, and customer interactions, are the backbone of your operation and ensure a well-run business.

However, it's the long-term goals that will map out the "big dream" of your business. These might include expansion, increasing the number of horses you board, or adding new services. Setting clear, achievable long-term goals gives you a direction and purpose. It's this vision for the future that will inspire your strategies, help you navigate challenges, and keep you motivated through the ups and downs of business ownership.

Finances Made Simple: A Key to Attracting Equestrian Loans

By creating a comprehensive business plan, you'll emerge as an expert in the horse boarding industry, well-equipped to navigate its challenges and seize its opportunities. You'll not only be ready to secure an equestrian loan for your venture but also to build a thriving and resilient one.

If you have additional questions or need further assistance in crafting your business plan or securing equestrian loans, our team is here to help. We’re conveniently located with several offices in Northeast Texas. Contact us at Legacy Ag Credit to take the next step toward realizing your equestrian business dreams.

Equestrian Business Plan FAQs

Q: what is the easiest way to complete my equestrian business plan.

A: There are Business plan templates available for an efficient and comprehensive business plan completion, streamlining the process and saving valuable time.

Q: What is the Goal of a Business Plan's Executive Summary?

A: The executive summary serves as an introduction, summarizing key aspects of your plan and offering a snapshot of your business to engage potential lenders.

Q: How do horse owners make money?

A: For most people, owning horses is a hobby, and the occupation varies. Some engage in professional equestrian activities and competitions or offer specialized services like training and breeding

Q: How do you create a business plan for a horse stable?

A: When crafting a business plan for a horse stable, emphasize the recreational nature of the business, tailored to individuals for whom horse ownership is a leisure pursuit.

Q: Can you make a decent living with a horse farm?

A: The potential to make a decent living with a horse farm depends on how you structure it. In many areas, horse farms are primarily recreational. Understanding the local market is essential when assessing income potential.

Q: How do you finance your horse farm?

A: Financing a horse farm can be achieved through various means, including personal savings, bank loans, and potentially angel investors. A well-detailed business plan is crucial to instill confidence in lenders.

How To Start A Boarding Barn & Stable: Essential Guide

An Essential Guide to Starting a Boarding Barn & Stable

As a horse lover and equestrian, you have likely had both positive and negative experiences at boarding barns or stables. Whether you own or lease your horse, you likely spend the majority of your free time at the barn. A positive boarding experience can make riding even more enjoyable! Unfortunately, however, finding a great boarding barn can often feel quite a challenge. This leads many long-time equestrians to start their own boarding barn and stable!

So, how do you start a boarding barn and stable? Starting a boarding barn and stable is similar, in many ways, to starting any other type of business. You must outline your goals, establish your business structure, select a location, hire experienced staff, purchase equipment, and market yourself to potential boarders!

In this post, we will walk through each step necessary to start a boarding barn and stable. With a solid foundation and proper planning, a boarding barn can be an emotionally (and financially) rewarding business venture!

Steps for Starting a Boarding Barn & Stable

It is important to view a boarding barn and stable for what it really is – a business. While you may have an undeniable passion and love for horses, you must establish and run your boarding barn like the business it is!

At first thought, starting a boarding barn and stable may seem like a relatively straightforward task. There are, however, several steps that are often overlooked throughout this process! While it is important that you not overlook any of these crucial steps, it is not necessary to complete them in any particular order. However, here is a general guideline that most equestrians follow as they establish their boarding barn:

Outline Your Goals for Your Boarding Barn & Stable

The first step towards any business venture is to outline your goals. What services will you provide? How many horses will you board at any given time? Will you need to hire any other staff members to join your team? These are just a few of the important questions you must ask yourself as you begin this exciting journey!

Outlining your goals and compiling your thoughts will allow you to systematically work through the steps necessary to get your dream off the ground.

Outline Your Boarding Options & Offerings

What is your plan of action once you open your boarding barn and stable? It is important to think through the boarding options and services you will offer to create a streamlined experience. Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you outline the services you will provide:

How Can You Best Meet Potential Boarders’ Needs?

Think back on your past boarding experiences. What were some of the services that you found most beneficial? Are there services that would improve the experience of those boarding at your barn? By meeting the needs of potential boarders, you will set yourself apart from other boarding barns in your area.

To learn more about what horse owners may be looking for in a boarding stable, check out my article Choosing a Boarding Stable Your Horse Will Love .

What Do You Find Lacking in Other Boarding Barns?

Do some research on the other boarding barns in your area. Are there services that they do not offer or ways that they do not fully meet the needs of horse owners? Do you have an area of expertise that you set your boarding barn above the rest?

Establish Your Business Structure from a Legal Standpoint

Your horse boarding business is just that – a business! You must establish your business structure from a legal standpoint to ensure that you do not violate any rules or regulations. Because operating a boarding barn and stable comes with a certain level of risk, it is wise to begin building your relationship with an attorney experienced in this area from the start.

While we certainly hope you never need to rely on the legal representation of your lawyer, having this relationship will minimize the stress and frustration you would otherwise feel. A lawyer can also offer guidance on how to track the financial aspect of your boarding business and other aspects of business managemen t that you may have forgotten.

Select a Location for Your Boarding Barn

If you do not already own space for your boarding barn, you will need to select a location! It is important to outline both your present and future needs as you begin your search. You must also take into consideration the costs associated with your new location.

Build a New Space

Of course the most exciting option would be to build a brand new space! Is there anything better than a clean, up-to-date boarding barn? This is obviously the more expensive option. However, a brand new space may allow you to charge a higher rate for your boarding services.

One downside to building a new space is that you must invest more financially at the beginning of your venture. Additionally, it will take you longer to start boarding horses due to the build time of your barn.

Lease an Existing Space

If building a new space is not a feasible option for you at the time, you may consider leasing an existing barn or stable! One of the greatest benefits of this option is that it requires a much smaller initial investment. Additionally, the space is ready to start boarding horses as soon as you are!

Hire an Experienced Staff

Even if you are planning on boarding only a few horses, you will need to hire a team of experienced equestrians! Owning and operating a boarding barn and stable is hard work. The staffing needs of your boarding barn will depend greatly on the size of your stable and the services you will provide.

Oftentimes, boarding barns employ a barn manager, a support staff that is responsible for daily upkeep, potentially a riding instructor. It is important to surround yourself with other individuals who are both experienced and passionate about their careers.

Purchase the Necessary Equipment

As an equestrian, you likely already have an idea of the equipment that is necessary for any boarding barn. You will need to ensure that your feed room, tack room, office, and barn are fully equipped to provide an exceptional experience. You will also need to think through what equipment is necessary for each stall, paddock, and riding area including fencing , water troughs, bedding, hay, and more.

Additionally, you will need to invest in maintenance equipment to ensure your boarding barn and stable remains in great shape once you begin boarding horses!

Advertise Your New Boarding Barn & Stable

Once you have secured your location, hired your staff, and purchased the necessary equipment, you are ready to accept your first boarder! While a large part of the equine community operates by word-of-mouth, intentional advertising is a great way to get your name out there and attract business.

Traditional Advertising

There are many ways to advertise your boarding barn and stable. Traditional advertising methods include posting ads at your local feed store, tack shop, shows, or other equestrian events! Consider taking out an ad in a local newspaper or advertising in horse show programs.

Network with other horse owners and equestrians. Offer discounts on the first month of boarding or incentivize referrals from your clients! Many boarding barns also partner with trainers in their community to promote their services. This can be a great way to build your clientele through the connections you have made in the community.

Online Advertising

Of course, we can not forget the value of online advertising ! In our digital age, it is important to establish an online presence. Work with a media company to design an educational and engaging website complete with photos of your boarding barn, a guide to your prices, and a list of the services you provide.

Harness the power of social media to promote openings in your barn or advertise upcoming events! While traditional advertising and marketing methods are highly valuable, it is important to not underestimate the power of an online presence.

Tips for Running a Successful Boarding Barn & Stable

So, once you get your boarding barn and stable off the ground, how do you provide an exceptional experience? Here are a few tips for running a successful boarding barn and stable:

Run Your Boarding Barn Like a Business

Although horses are likely your greatest passion, you must remember that your boarding barn is your business. It is important to run your boarding barn and stable like the business it is! This includes proper financial recording, record keeping, and legal documentation.

While this is often the most boring aspect of owning a boarding barn, it will go a long way in preventing future frustration and stress. One aspect of running a business that you’ll need to stay on top of, even as a boarding stable owner, is the in-coming and out-going money. The majority of the income you make from a boarding stable will come from the boarding rates you charge. To help you get an idea of the average cost of board, check out my article Boarding a Horse: How Much It Costs .

Hire a Qualified & Experienced Staff

Although it has previously been mentioned, we can not over-emphasize the power of experienced and qualified staff. You will likely spend most of your time at the barn, especially in your early days. However, when you are not at the barn, your staff are responsible for creating a top-notch experience for your boarders!

Build Relationships With Your Boarders

While proper planning is the best way to create a positive boarding experience, it is simply impossible to think through every aspect of your boarding experience. Over time, boarders will express concerns and frustrations. It is important to be patient and open to suggestions.

By building a relationship with the horse owners who choose to board their horses at your barn, you will build loyalty and a foundation of trust. This will allow you to consistently improve the quality of your services and facility to better serve your boarders.

Offer Additional Services to Your Boarders

Continue to think of new ways to serve your boarders. Can you offer monthly grooming services? Perhaps you could partner with a farrier to come to the barn regularly? By constantly adding to the services that you offer, you will continue to improve the experience you provide.

Don’t Forget to Market Your Boarding Business

The goal of every boarding barn owner is a full barn! Don’t be discouraged if your growth is slow but steady. Continue to market your boarding business through both traditional and online methods. Is there an upcoming event at which you could set up a booth? Name recognition will go a long way in building your boarding business!

Types of Services to Offer at Your Boarding Barn & Stable

Full-Service Boarding

Full-service boarding requires the greatest amount of effort on your part. However, it also allows you to ensure that a high-quality experience is provided for every horse in your barn. With full-service boarding, a horse owner pays you to house their horse. You and your team are also responsible for the daily care of the horse including cleaning the horse and its stall.

Additionally, with full-service boarding, you are responsible for ensuring that the horse has daily exercise. A full-service boarding experience is ideal for horse owners who are not able to spend every day at the barn with their horses yet want to provide the horse with top-notch care.

Partial Boarding

Partial boarding varies a bit depending on the agreement the horse owner has with the boarding barn. Typically, the boarding barn staff is responsible for some of the daily care but not all of it. For example, your staff may be responsible for cleaning out the stall but not for daily exercise.

Short-Term Boarding

One popular service that can be highly profitable for boarding barns is short-term boarding! This service is often a full-service boarding experience for a short period of time, ideal for horse owners who are vacationing or relocating.

Like any other type of business, starting a boarding barn and stable can be incredibly intimidating. However, pursuing this career allows you to spend each day living out your passion, something for which we should all strive!

If you plan on running a boarding stable, it’s vital that you educate yourself about proper horse care, as you will likely be seeing to the needs of numerous horses. To learn more, visit my article How to Care For a Horse: Ultimate Guide For Beginners .

P.S. Save this to your “Horse Barn” board!

Carmella Abel

I’m a lifelong horse trainer and horseback rider who’s passionate about teaching others about the things I’ve learned. I grew up competing in numerous English horseback riding disciplines and am now a certified equine massage therapist. I currently own three horses. You can read my full bio here .

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Horse Businesses: How do Horse Farms and Riding Stables Make Money?

Posted on Published: April 27, 2021 - Last updated: May 16, 2021

How to make a business plan for a horse related business.

How do horse farms and riding stables make money? Ask just about any horse owner how much money they make from their horses and you’re likely to get a pretty big laugh before an answer of “absolutely nothing”. Horses, horseback riding, and equestrian hobbies are known to be some of the most expensive hobbies a person can have, so how is it that horse farms and riding stables could possibly be profitable?

In this article, we will explore some of the models by which horse farms, riding stables, and other equine businesses make money.

Types of Horse Businesses and How They Make Money

Riding stables..

Riding stables are horse farms that exist primarily to provide a service to customers. Most horse riding stables offer horseback riding lessons and also provide housing for other people’s horses – called boarding.

Riding stables make money by: charging money for horseback riding lessons and charging money for taking care of other people’s horses.

Primary expenses of horse riding stables: a riding stable needs to purchase and provide housing and care for horses used for riding lessons. A horse riding stable must also pay for liability insurance if a rider is injured, as well as employing a riding instructor and support staff.

Horse breeding farms

Horse farms that focus on breeding horses for sale operate differently than a horseback riding lesson business. Breeding farms make money by creating more horses and selling them.

Primary income: the sale of foals and weanlings (young horses)

major expenses: a horse breeding business is responsible for the care and feeding of their breeding stock, as well as significant veterinary costs associated with breeding.

Depending on the breed of horse that is being bred, and the quality of the bloodlines, income produced by horse breeding can vary dramatically – with foals of some breed and bloodlines selling for $500 while foals of another breed and bloodline’s foals may sell for over $10,000! Generally, the income produced by a horse breeding business is relative to the amount of money that can be invested in high-quality and well-bred breeding stock.

How horse trainers make money

Horse training is an especially difficult horse business model to make money from. Unlike breeding and riding operations which can be fairly easily scaled (i.e. made larger and bigger without the business owner investing equally large amounts of time), horse training businesses generally require a huge time investment for the owner/operator and for that reason tend to be less profitable.

Horse training businesses generate income through charging horse owners for training services and for boarding while the horse is kept at the trainer’s facility.

Major expenses: time investment, liability insurance.

Horse training can also be a risky horse business model because of the high likelihood of injury on the part of a horse trainer at some point during their career. A horse training business is too often built around one horse trainer’s ability to work with horses. In this business model, if an injury sidelines the trainer’s ability to work with horses, the entire business model can collapse. Horse businesses like riding stables and horse breeding farms are less dependent upon one individual.

A riding instructor stands and speaks to three women on horses.

Making a Business Plan for a Horse Business

Even though horse businesses can be among the most challenging types of businesses to turn a profit, with good business management and creativity it’s possible. The Small Business Administration offers a good template for a business plan that can be adapted to horse businesses.

Many horse enthusiasts want to dive headfirst into a horse business like owning a horseback riding stable or a breeding farm without understanding the business fundamentals behind owning a horse-related business. If you’re considering breeding horses or opening a riding stable, surround yourself with good resources to help your business thrive.

You don’t need a business degree to thrive in business, but a few classes on business management can save a lot of headaches and potential heartbreaks. Here are some tips:

Check your local community college for courses on business management,
Reach out to a local Chamber of Commerce for advice
Seek out a business incubator. Business incubators are organizations designed to support new small business owners as they set out on new endeavors. By offering a mentor or coach, free tax advice, and help with appropriate licensing, a business incubator can help your business start on the right foot so that your horse business thrives.

image of a child riding a pony at a walk

Maximize Horse Business Income through Diversification

Although above, we have outlined three common models by which horse businesses make money, the most profitable equine businesses are those that can combine multiple income streams. For example, while paying only one farm mortgage and one liability insurance policy, a farm can exist as both a breeding operation and horseback riding stable- while also bringing a horse trainer on as an employee to offer horse training services. Even more additional horse business income can be gained through adding any of the following services:

Pony parties (horse themed birthday parties on your farm or on location for a fee)
Horseback riding camps for kids
Horse themed retreats for adults
Developing a working student model – where some of your barn’s labor is performed by students
Content creation (can you make educational videos about your horse business for YouTube or your own blog? Success in this area can help support a horse business)
Selling equipment to riders wholesale – while you may not want to open a full-scale tack store, if you have riders coming for horseback riding lessons, you have an entire market of people who need to buy helmets and other riding equipment. Purchasing these items wholesale and selling them at a profit can provide additional income.
Horse retirement boarding – if you have acreage in a low cost of living part of the world, you may be able to make a profit by offering “horse retirement boarding”. This arrangement allows people from areas where it is very very expensive to board a horse (like New York, Florida, California, and other coastal areas) to retire their show horses to a safe, inexpensive home for the final years of their life.
Boarding for short-term travel boarding – if your farm is located near a major highway or interstate, you may be able to boost income by offering stalls or corrals with a per-day rate. Many horse owners travel across the country for shows, trail rides, and equestrian events. These travelers are often looking for a place to unload their horses during multi-day journies. If you have a space that can be converted to housing for humans and rented per night as a bed-and-breakfast or Airbnb, you can boost your profit even further.
Hosting events. If you’ve invested in a good arena – especially a covered arena – you can bring in an extra profit by renting the facility to event organizers for horse shows, rodeos, and livestock events.
Wedding venue. Rustic weddings are still chic, and if your horse business has the right aesthetic, you may be able to host weddings in your barn, hay barn, or even a pasture with an idyllic view.

All of these are great ways to supplement the income of horse businesses so that your horse business makes a profit and stays in business long-term, helping to promote equestrian hobbies and provide access to horses for people in your region.

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How to Write a Business Plan for an Equine Facility

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Basic Business Plan Structure

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Running an equine facility requires paying attention to a lot of moving parts -- literally. Working with horses means round-the-clock care, seven days a week. If you teach lessons, board or train horses in your facility, you'll have client horses and lesson horses. A good business plan makes sure you’ve thought through all of the details, from hiring help to the fees you’ll charge. If you need outside financing to help with construction or start-up costs, presenting a thoroughly prepared business plan is an important first step for a lender or investor.

Executive Summary

You’ll probably write your executive summary last, but it appears first in the business plan. Succinctly describe the main points of your equine business: the idea, how you expect to make a profit, money you’ll need to get it started, the management and business structure and what you’ll need to accomplish to consider it a success. Don’t take up more than one-half to three-quarters of a page.

Equine Business Description

In this section, describe the equine industry in your geographical region and how your business idea fits into it. For example, if it’s a popular area for horse owners but nearby boarding facilities are full with waiting lists, that can justify opening a boarding facility. If the situation changes, explain how you are prepared to adapt. This can be anything from an increase in your grain costs to a competing facility opening near you. Also describe your business structure; for example, whether it’s a sole proprietorship or corporation.

Market Strategies

Here, you will describe your research results on the need for an equine facility like yours and how you will persuade customers to use your facility. Describe what your positioning will be compared to other facilities. For example, you may offer packages that include lessons and training with board or have all-weather facilities. Detail your pricing strategy in this section, and project your sales with this information.

Competitive Analysis

Describe your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses, and then compare those to yours. Detail how you expect to woo customers based on your strengths. For example, if you or your employees have specialized training or certification in equine management or training that your market analysis shows is lacking in other facility operations, that is a competitive strength.

Development Plan

Your development plan outlines everything you need to do from start to finish. This includes any construction, purchasing or remodeling you need to do; marketing materials like business cards and flyers you need to print; personnel you need to hire; your schedule; your budget. Also outline possible risks or things that can go wrong and how you are prepared to deal with them.

Management and Operations

Describe the nuts and bolts of your equine business. If you simply own a facility and will hire the staff to run it, detail that in this section, as well as the responsibilities of each individual. Detail all of your costs of doing business -- your overhead -- and any major purchases you’ll need to make, such as a tractor and manure spreader for manure management.

Here you describe your numbers, presenting them in three ways: an income statement, cash flow statement and balance sheet. Your first statements are projections, but as you begin running things, you’ll prepare income and cash flow statements every month, and the balance sheet once a year. Your income statement details your ability to generate revenue. Your cash flow statement is the difference between the income and your expenses; if you are out of cash at the end of each month, either your income needs to grow or your expenses need to shrink. Your balance sheet is a summary that describes your assets, liabilities and equity.

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Based in Central Texas, Karen S. Johnson is a marketing professional with more than 30 years' experience and specializes in business and equestrian topics. Her articles have appeared in several trade and business publications such as the Houston Chronicle. Johnson also co-authored a series of communications publications for the U.S. Agency for International Development. She holds a Bachelor of Science in speech from UT-Austin.

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Creating a Business Plan

June 1, 2014
⎯ Stephanie Stephens

Home » Creating a Business Plan

Running a profitable boarding stable is challenging. Increasing feed, grain, fuel and land costs combined with rising client expectations require stable owners to maintain a delicate balance between client satisfaction and profitability.

For stable managers, keeping the doors open can be a day-to-day struggle between the labor demands and the finances required simply to keep the facility afloat. However, a business plan can provide stable owners with guidance while allowing them to anticipate and prepare the business for change, both expected and unexpected.

“If you speak with many business owners, they will tell you they started their business without a business plan,” said Johanna Mather, instructor for Accounting, Entrepreneurship and Marketing at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, New York. “Some will tell you that is a fine line between taking action and planning. Others will tell you that they didn’t think about planning until after they immersed themselves in the business, but it is essential to think about what the entrepreneur wants as an end result or exit strategy.”

Though most people tend to consider a business plan only at start-up, a well-crafted business plan is an important component to a business at any stage.

“A business plan forces the business owner to take a deep dive into the intricacies of running the business,” said Erin Boggan, vice president, Community Reinvestment Officer at Berkshire Bank. “This way, the business owner knows exactly what the product will be and who the targeted demographic audience [is that] he/she will serve.”

Business plans are “living documents” that can be updated and modified over time and as realities change. They take into account what you would like your stable to look like in the present day, as well as three and five years into the future. If the time is taken to correctly develop a business plan, it also outlines the path to achieving your goals. Once created, update the plan so that it truly supports your stable’s development over time.

Finding Support

It is easy to be overwhelmed by the details included in a formal business plan. “The best advice would be to find a mentor with entrepreneurial experience to help you,” Mather said. “Even if you use consulting services, mentors will serve you throughout the life of your business.

The most difficult part of creating a business plan is getting started. “I usually tell people to just get their idea down on paper,” Mather continued. Business plans vary in length, but typically contain similar parts. “It is important to clearly define the goals that the entrepreneur has for the business,” she added.

If you don’t have a business plan drafted for your stable, read on to learn more about the important components of any formal business plan.

Drafting a Plan

“A business plan doesn’t have to be a specific length,” Mather said. “The quality of the plan is important, and the type of business will also determine the length. Many plans are long, but say nothing.”

Every business plan opens with an Executive Summary , a concise explanation of your expectations for the stable or farm. The Executive Summary is a one-page synopsis that highlights the major points that will follow later in the business plan. This is the place where you share your goals for the operation, the disciplines that you plan to serve and the services (training, boarding, breeding, etc.) that you would like to provide.

A Company Description follows the Executive Summary. In this section, you will fully explain why you were motivated to open your stable and how you first became involved in the industry. Include any milestones or awards the stable has earned, your mission statement and the type of horse owner you plan to serve.

Essentially, the Company Description “provides information on what you do, what differentiates your business from others, and the markets your business serves,” notes the Small Business Administration website ( http://www.sba.gov/content/company-description ).

Next you’ll need an Industry and Market Analysis. This is especially important for new stables, but it also can make a big difference in the success of existing barns. Research the local horse market to find out how much horse owners are willing to pay, which services they are looking for and what other stables are offering; in other words, find out who your competition is and what they are doing right or wrong.

You will need to describe your client base. Are you serving recreational horse owners? Hunter/jumper competitors? Western performance riders? The rates you establish and the services rendered will be specific to each demographic.

Take the time to understand and explain how your facility will differ from others. Will you provide access to alternative therapeutic services, extra turnout, training, trails or an indoor arena? Figure out how you are different or special and include that in your business plan.

“Predict future sales for the next three years minimum,” Mather urged. “Most entrepreneurs will tell you that this is impossible, but it does give people a reality check as they usually grossly overestimate sales.”

A Marketing Plan is an important section in the business plan, as it details why clients will choose your stable over another, as well as highlighting how you plan to introduce your stable to new clients. It will include your pricing structure and plans for advertising, marketing materials, use of digital marketing tools and general promotional strategy.

Regardless of the size of your facility, a business plan will require a management team and company structure section. Within this section, explain whether you will be the sole owner and employee, or whether you will have additional owners and staff. It is also helpful to describe your stable, the amenities it includes and any equipment, such as tractors, manure spreaders, trucks, trailers, etc., that are necessary to run the business.

A formal business plan also addresses financial projections. If your stable is an established business, outline all income generated by each service offered. Expenses should be acknowledged and be inclusive of every cost associated with doing business. Provide between three and five years’ worth of information, if available, especially if you are seeking a line of credit. Income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements for at least three to five years provide supporting documentation.

New stables, on the other hand, will prepare Prospective Financial Data, often called a Pro-forma. A pro-forma highlights anticipated expenses and income in year one, year three and year five to demonstrate growth and viability of the business.

To visualize what should be included in a pro-forma, “I usually have students close their eyes and picture walking through the front door of their business,” Mather explained. “Everything they see and touch, they have to purchase, lease, make or hire. And there is a cost associated with that.”

Close your eyes and picture the stable you plan to operate. Does the barn have heated wash stalls? Outlets in front of every stall? Will you be providing alternative therapies such as treadmills, cold compression systems or plate-vibration therapy? Each of those items and many more have associated costs. Account for those up front and consider whether there are ways to provide board or training services that can be more efficient while providing the same or better outcomes.

“Make sure that your projections match your funding requests; creditors will be on the lookout for inconsistencies. It’s much better if you catch mistakes before they do,” notes the Small Business Association ( http://www.sba.gov/content/financials ).

Securing funding for first-time businesses is difficult in our present economic times. “However, a solid business plan highlights the consumer need for the product and the opportunity for this business to have a monetary significance when considering the supply and demand of the current market,” Boggan said.

An appendix is not required, but it is an ideal place to attach additional information such as photos of your facility, snapshots of your website or other marketing materials, contracts for boarding, training or a lesson program, insurance, letters of reference and any awards or recognition your stable may have achieved.

Take-Home Message

Your business plan is just that, a plan; it is a road map designed to help you achieve your goals. It was created by you and can be changed by you if you think it needs adjusting. “It will never play out exactly as you have planned; even though you plan a straight path, it ends up looking more like a zigzag,” Mather said. “You have to try implementing your plan to see what works and what doesn’t, and keep changing accordingly. Sometimes your biggest failures later become lessons for your greatest successes.”

Available Resources

If your head is spinning from the details required in a business plan, don’t despair; you’re not alone. Fortunately, there are numerous resources available to help you get started. Use one or several of the free or low-cost resources listed below:

The U.S. Small Business Administration ( www.sba.gov ) provides detailed information and support for new and existing small business owners, also offering templates to help you begin your business plan.

SCORE ( www.score.org ) is a non-profit association dedicated to helping small businesses get off the ground, grow and achieve their goals through education and mentorship. The website provides advice and templates for drafting your first business plan.

Local Chambers of Commerce provide excellent advice on getting a business plan drafted.

Local community colleges with an entrepreneur or business program can also provide resources. The Ice House Entrepreneurial Program (http://www.kauffman.org/what-we-do/programs/entrepreneurship/ice-house-entrepreneurship-program) makes resources easily accessible on its website.

Entrepreneur Magazine’s website ( http://www.entrepreneur.com/magazine ) provides free access to a wealth of knowledge. Simply enter “Business Plans” in the search bar and advice on how to create a business plan, what information to include and templates for getting started are available at no charge.

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Advice for Barn and Business

Financial Planner

$ 98.00

New Release – January 2023

Stop struggling!

This easy-to-use, plug & play Planner was designed specifically for equestrian business owners. It can help you predict your income, calculate expenses, and figure out where to spend your time and energy. Just plug in your board and service rates, and let the embedded formulas do all the work. You will be surprised at how this exercise will relieve stress , not create it.

Description

Reviews (3)

Few of us actually want to know the numbers when it comes to running a barn or business. Despite this, we need the numbers so we can keep doing what we love for a long time.

This financial worksheet for horse barns includes spaces for things like your board, lesson and training rates, cost of hay and bedding, labor, and other expenses that are specific to horse farms. It also calculates your potential income based on the number of services you deliver. Just plug your numbers into the pre-formatted cells and the template automatically calculates your income. Plus, your year-end taxes will be a breeze.

While this version of the Planner is set up for a boarding stable, it can be customized for any horse business. Contact us for a custom spreadsheet.

Use this template in conjunction with the Stall and Stable Business Plan Guide , or our Business Model Planner , and you’ll be off to a great start.

Latest Updated: February 19, 2023
Prepared by the Stall and Stable Business Team
Format: Microsoft Excel (protected worksheet) *

Don’t have MS Excel? That’s okay. Apple computers (MacBooks, iMacs, and iPads) can open and convert Excel files in the Apple Numbers program. You can also upload and open Excel files in Google Sheets .

* This downloadable spreadsheet is protected in order to preserve the embedded financial formulas. If you need an unprotected worksheet, please include a note with your order on the checkout screen.

3 reviews for Financial Planner

Alicia Harlov (verified owner) – January 14, 2023

This template was perfect, exactly what I needed to work through my business financials and apply for business funding. It was easy to use and easy to adjust the numbers specific to your situation.

Penny Harkness (verified owner) – November 2, 2022

I didn’t think something I could download from the internet would make such a big difference in my business. The financial worksheet is very easy to use. It helped me figure out how much I should charge for board and that I could actually afford to pay someone to clean stalls for us!

Lori Taylor – August 23, 2021

I wanted to change the way I do employer taxes and payroll taxes. It is a FANTASTIC tool.

Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.

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Ereidi Farm

Executive summary executive summary is a brief introduction to your business plan. it describes your business, the problem that it solves, your target market, and financial highlights.">.

The Company Ereidi Farm began as a home-based part-time endeavor while the owner raised her young child. Her many years in the industry made her well suited for the services offered by the farm. Ereidi Farm functions as a quality thoroughbred breeding and training farm specializing in highly individualized care programs designed for each horse’s needs. Ereidi Farm has always focused on its clients and their equine investments and genuinely enjoys assisting clients.

Our committment to our clients is long term, our focus has never ended at the point of sale – we are absolutely committed to the success of our clients and we go above and beyond the normal practices when providing our clients with all the information they require to make knowledgeable, informed decisions concerning their bloodstock investments. Due to the demand for our services, our farm is planning on relocating to a larger facility and is now in the process of incorporating to better facilitate the accounting end of the business management.

The Product Ereidi Farm provides the following services to its market: breaking and training of young racehorses, broodmare care, and rehabilitative care for injured racehorses. Our programs are individualized and no horse is pushed through a program just to get the job done. Horses graduating from our programs are confident, fit, healthy and relaxed about the work, they are winners!! We offer exceptional care for pregnant and foaling mares. We will except high-risk mares – our farm has had a 100% live foal ratio every single year despite foaling out older and problem mares, we take very good care of these special ladies! Our rehabilitative services have horses from all states of the region arriving at our farm for post-operative work and therapy.

The thoroughness of our care insures that these athletes recover completely with minimal complications. All of the horses rehabilitated by the farm have gone on to useful careers, many returning to racing and running in improved form. Our home-grown sales reflect the owner’s knowledge of equine genetics; horses from the farm’s breeding program have won races at their very first asking and have posted bullet works in training. They are bright stars and have done a fabulous job representing the farm and their owners. Most importantly we provide “Full Circle” service for our clients. Our committment to their success is long lasting and at a depth not found in the racing community at large. Their success is our success and we are deeply aware of this need within the industry.

The Market The thoroughbred industry continues to grow in the United States. The racing industry within the state of Pennsylvania is poised for an explosive period of growth within the next year as slot machine legislation is approved and passed. The demand for Pennsylvania-bred horses is on the rise as is the need to raise and train these individuals. Pennsylvania is focused on becoming the premier racing state in the country, surpassing all other states in its purse and bonus monies awards, this is attracting large numbers of horses to Pennsylvania and the need for facilities to house them is growing rapidly.

This growth, coupled with the deterioration of traditionally strong racing state programs has caused a flurry of activity as owners of breeding and racing stock within these declining states seek to relocate their investments. We have targeted these owners as well as brand new investors and Pennsylvania owners looking to upgrade their programs as clients for our expanded farm. Our marketing programs are focused on promoting using the venues that are commonly used by those in our target market. These programs are designed to bring potential clients to our farm, the location where sales are most frequently completed. We realize that technology is absolutely necessary in today’s markets and we have embraced its use happily and with success.

Financial Projections Our farm has started out small for specific reasons, we are now looking forward to an expansion that will allow us to utilize all of our skills. The owner’s husband is currently the parts and service director at his place of business, responsible for $13.3 million dollars of parts and service sales annually and maintaining a large inventory. He has 65 employees reporting to him. He will be mentoring the owner on the financials.

In summary, the financial projections represent the growth that will occur upon the relocation of the farm to its new world class facility. They represent the planned growth that is possible with the securing of a facility that is large enough to accommodate the ever-growing needs of the marketplace. We expect profits for two reasons: 1) we are timing our market expansion at a critical time, just as the Pennsylvania thoroughbred industry enters its largest growth phase in its history and 2) our services to clients and their bloodstock is exceptional, it is simply world class.

Horse training business plan, executive summary chart image

1.1 Keys to Success

A well-targeted marketing plan utilizing modern technologies as well as traditional formats.

Providing a quality facility that is attractive to our clients.

Following through on delivering the quality of service that our marketing and facility images promise. Ereidi Farm has built its reputation by exceeding our client’s expectations. Our attention to detail and our commitment to our clients remains unsurpassed within the industry.

1.2 Mission

The purpose of Ereidi Farm is to increase our clients’ opportunities for successful thoroughbred investment by providing word class quality, individualized care and training programs at a safe facility which is staffed by caring, experienced personnel. Everyone at Ereidi Farm has a deep commitment to our clients. We believe that constant communication, unquestionable integrity and our ability to provide “Full Circle” services are the hallmarks of the success and growth of our farm.

1.3 Objectives

Secure financing to purchase a turn-key facility that is located on a parcel of land in a developing area. The facility must represent real value, selling for less than its cost to build and having a location that is targeted for long-term growth and development, thus increasing the value of the land. Land parcel must be suitable for other uses than farming to provide long-term development options. Interstate access, both locally and regionally must be excellent. Land must be located in an area that has required support structures in place suitable to a horse farm.
Close sale on current farm facility to generate approximately $300,000 of capital to reinvest into business expansion.
Achieve break-even status within one year of relocating to the larger facility.
Maintain a comfortable net profit into the second and third years.

Company Summary company overview ) is an overview of the most important points about your company—your history, management team, location, mission statement and legal structure.">

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Due to changes in Pennsylvania’s thoroughbred racing program, the demand for quality services has escalated dramatically. After the planned purchase of our new facility is complete, we will relocate to Pine Grove, Pennsylvania. The farm offers exceptional “Full Circle” services to owners and breeders of thoroughbred bloodstock. Our specialty is our highly individualized training and care programs with a strong focus on client communications and education. We are committed to the success of our clients’ thoroughbred investments and go above and beyond the normal requirements to secure the best opportunities for our clients and their horses.

2.1 Company Ownership

Ereidi Farm was formed as a sole proprietorship by its current owner, Heidi Trimbur. Current growth patterns of the farm have made it prudent to incorporate and its new subchapter S corporation status is now pending. The business remains a private entity, held by its owner.

2.2 Company History

The owner of Ereidi Farm, in addition to being formally educated in equine science and management, has worked within the equine industry for over 20 years. Ereidi Farm was officially formed as a thoroughbred facility three years ago. The farm, despite being a part-time venture at start-up, as the owner’s child was a toddler, held close to the break-even point in its first year.

Second year sales were directly affected by the events of September 11, 2001 as the Fall yearling thoroughbred sales began on September 10th of that year. Despite this loss, Ereidi Farm came back strong in 2002, generating a profit and sales have been profitable in 2003 with the farm’s largest sales quarter in the Fall.

The need for expansion has become obvious as the farm has had to turn clients away due to lack of space at its current location. With the pending growth of Pennsylvania’s thoroughbred industry poised to enter an extremely lucrative period, expansion strategy and its timing have become top priorities of the farm.

Horse training business plan, company summary chart image

Ereidi Farm specializes in providing highly individualized services to the thoroughbred racehorse industry. These services include breaking and training of youngsters with a personalized, non-production line type of focus; broodmare management and foaling, we specialize in high-risk pregnancies and older mares; boarding for youngsters with daily attention and handling; and intensive care, post-operative rehabilitative service for recovering race horses.

Ereidi Farm breeds and sells a few quality Pennsylvania-bred foals per year and offers consulting and genetic services for those new to the industry and/or developing their own breeding programs.

Market Analysis Summary how to do a market analysis for your business plan.">

Ereidi Farm’s largest market segment will be owners of quality thoroughbreds who do not reside in Pennsylvania. As racing purses and breeding fund monies begin or continue to decline in several traditionally strong racing states, owners are searching for more profitable venues in which to place their horses. This coupled with the anticipated growth in purse and bonus monies available to Pennsylvania-breds and in Pennsylvania races, has made this state an attractive possibility for owners relocating their bloodstock to more lucrative markets.

This trend is beginning to reveal itself in statistical data. Pennsylvania has increased its U.S. Foal Crop share (2.7%) and is now in the top ten of all producing states. The average stallion book size has also increased and Pennsylvania now is ranked in the top ten for stallion book size. Top ten states posting a decrease include: California, Texas, Maryland, Oklahoma and Illinois, indicating declines in their racing programs. Neighboring New Jersey has also posted a decline (-38.1%) reflecting the health of the industry within its borders. Ereidi Farm has received many requests for boarding and foaling services from residents of Maryland and New Jersey reflecting the need of residents from these states to relocate their thoroughbred operations.

Research indicates that today’s thoroughbred owner is most likely to fit the following profile: male (special note: women thoroughbred investors are on the rise although they usually invest in ownership through partnerships); average age is 45+, lower than previous years supporting overall national salary statistics and many more owners are pooling their resources and forming partnerships; income in excess of $90,500 per year; is a knowledgeable investor and takes a business approach to thoroughbred investing; focus is on quality not quantity and understands and expects to pay for better quality services; over 80% utilize the Internet and its resources.

Pennsylvania provides great opportunity for new or migrating investors as our state’s historical position of thoroughbred production and racing has been one of “low end” quality. These facts make Pennsylvania an opportunity zone for those with quality bloodstock programs and for those who can offer quality services and facilities to accommodate incoming horses.

4.1 Market Segmentation

Ereidi Farm has targeted the following markets for its growth strategy:

Potential clients who are currently breeding and racing their horses in states with declining racing and breeding programs. These clients are not only looking to relocate, they are used to spending more per horse than the traditional Pennsylvania thoroughbred owner. States with declining racing programs will have declining Foal Crop share percentages as owners relocate their mares to more lucrative states. Declining US Foal Crop share is present in: California (-26.6%), Texas (-12.4%), Louisiana (-19.0%), Maryland (-35.8%), Oklahoma (-39.6%), Illinois (-35.4%), New Jersey (-38.1%), Virginia (-32.9%). These figures correspond directly to overall racing programs and conditions within each of these states. Thoroughbred owners within these states have been specifically targeted by Ereidi Farm.
Pennsylvania thoroughbred owners who are looking to upgrade the quality of their racing and breeding programs. Small owners who fail to upgrade their programs within the state will get squeezed out by incoming competition, upgrading will become key to staying in business. Pennsylvania has begun to prepare for the upgrading that slot machines will have on racing purses within the state by bringing in new, better quality stallions. Pennsylvania is now in the top ten for Distribution of Active Stallions and Mares Bred, standing 103 stallions in 2002, breeding 1,009 mares in 2002 posting an average book size of 9.8% (increasing from 2001’s 8.5%).
New thoroughbred investors/partnerships represent great opportunities and investors are comparing state programs. Pennsylvania scores high posting not only increasing purse monies but also substantial owner/breeder/stallion owner awards. The breeder of any registered Pennsylvania-bred foal earns 20% to 30% (depending on state stallion stands in) residual income from the bonus program if a foal finishes first through third in any Pennsylvania race, not including stakes races. The owner of the horse at the time of racing is eligible for an additional 40% in bonus awards and the stallion owner (if a registered Pennsylvania stallion) receives a 10% bonus – all residual income! Ereidi Farm will specifically market to non-thoroughbred owners with incomes in excess of $90,500 who are professionals with investment backgrounds. We have attracted several new clients this way including non-U.S. residents.

Horse training business plan, market analysis summary chart image

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

Ereidi Farm provides a high-end type of quality and service within our industry, it is therefore imperative that we define, locate and attract clients who have the funds available in which to purchase our services. Understanding the historical flow of regional racing is important to client recruiting.

The better regional racing stables traditionally raced on the New York, New Jersey and Maryland circuit. Horse that could not win in these states were shipped to the “low-end” racing circuits (i.e., smaller purse sizes) of Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Because horses racing in these “low-end” states did not earn as much money, their owners did not have the means to pay higher prices for services, hence most farms in Pennsylvania (there are some exceptions) focus on price before quality and rely on quantity numbering to reach their quotas.

As our standards for acceptable care are quite different from the traditional Pennsylvania farm, it was most important to define and locate clients who would meet our defined “ideal client” profile. Our clients are well-educated professionals, they utilize Internet resources to stay current with industry changes and trends. They expect outstanding service and are willing to pay for it.

Upon securing financing for our expansion, Ereidi Farm is prepared to roll out its marketing campaign. We will target our client base through the use of: Internet advertising of sites frequently visited by our clients, our website, print advertising in selected magazines and national newspapers, industry sales, seminars and trade shows, business-to-business contacts, organizational memberships and open houses at our facility.

4.3 Service Business Analysis

The thoroughbred industry in the United States is the largest in the world, offering 55,127 yearly races (2001). Japan is ranked second with 23,820 races and Australia third with 21,218 races. Thoroughbred racing as an entertainment choice is growing. Pari-mutual handle on thoroughbred racing in the United States topped $15 billion for the first time last year according to the statistics contained in the 13th edition of The Jockey Club Fact Book released 02/07/03. Handle on U.S. races in 2002 reached $15,062,131,835. (including separate pool first reported in 2000), an increase of 3.5% against 2001. This marked the ninth consecutive year of growth in handle.

U.S. purses, meanwhile, advanced 0.6% in 2002 to $1,074,247,738. The bulk of the increase was derived from states whose tracks offer expanded forms of gaming, namely Delaware, Louisiana, New Mexico and West Virginia. Pennsylvania will join this list upon the passing of current slot machine legislation and its purse sizes will increase as will the number of thoroughbreds racing for the increased purse offerings.

In addition to purse offerings, owners and breeders have another source of income and this income is residual. The Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association (www.pabred.com) manages the Pennsylvania Breeding Fund Program. This program distributes more money, on a per foal basis, than nearly every other state-bred program now in operation. Currently, it distributes approximately $9.5 million annually with specific percentages being awarded to owners, breeders and stallion owners.

These specific percentages are awarded to the human connections of the horses finishing first, second or third in Pennsylvania races. The criteria for qualifying for these residual income awards are simply that the horse must be a registered Pennsylvania-bred foal. To be a registered Pennsylvania-bred foal, a mare must foal in the state of Pennsylvania and meet residency requirements. This has increased the demand for quality foaling and boarding facilities within the state. Awards are based off of percentages from purse monies earned and they are a very attractive incentive to draw clients from outside of Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania racing is poised for a lucrative and dramatic growth period, smart investors are positioning themselves within the state, preparing to capitalize on the new purse structure that slot machines will provide. This has already lead to a shortage of stall space at tracks and farms throughout the state as well as increased demand for quality services and programs.

Ereidi Farm realizes that market entry into any expanding market is always time critical, it is our intention to be properly positioned to absorb the expanding growth as it occurs within our state. Research indicated that most of the expected growth will occur as outside owners enter Pennsylvania. These owners have already been targeted as those most desired by our farm, it is our strategy to have completed our relocation prior to this time in order to better provide the services the incoming owners will be searching for.

4.3.1 Competition and Buying Patterns

Pennsylvania has many small farms operating with a “Price is Vital” philosophy. These farms were created to service the traditional Pennsylvania thoroughbred owner. It is not our intention to run our facility in this manner, our focus has always been on exceptional quality care and outstanding customer service.

Pennsylvania does have a few large farms that do market themselves as being full service facilities. A few of them do attempt to market to our intended client base. These farms include: Pin Oak Stud, Xanthus Farm, Reigle Heir Farm, Castle Rock Farm and Swatara Farm. Of these, only Pin Oak Stud positions itself as a full service facility, the others are focused on the stallion and breeding market.

One of the most frequent comments we hear from our clients is how happy they are with the care their horses receive while at our farm. We exceed their expectations. Another frequent comment is how comfortable our clients feel talking with us. Their focus is on the quality of our programs and our business relationship. Price has not been an issue for our clientele as they understand the cost of delivering world class care and service. These are the driving factors our clients consider when making decisions about where to send their horses.

Strategy and Implementation Summary

Ereidi Farm will focus its expansion on the following markets: Thoroughbred owners and breeders in state racing programs that are in decline, Pennsylvania thoroughbred owners and breeders that realize they must upgrade their current stock in order to remain competitive and new potential first time owners, usually in the form of partnerships.

Attracting these clients will be done using modern technology (i.e., Internet and website resources) as well as specifically defined print advertising. We will make ourselves more present at public venues where our potential clients gather. Locations such as public thoroughbred sales, seminars, racetracks and trade shows have been targeted.

Our farm has been built on its reputation for exceeding clients expectations on the care of their horses and providing outstanding customer service. These are and will remain the hallmarks of our farm.

5.1 Competitive Edge

Ereidi Farm’s competitive advantage is multi-faceted. We are different from our competitors for the following reasons:

Our people : We invest in quality, client-focused people and provide them with opportunities for continued learning and skill utilization. Our people are well-informed, engaging and embrace the Ereidi Farm “Full Circle” service philosophy.
Our programs : Our programs are comprehensive and individualized. No detail is overlooked and no horse gets lost in a “production line” type of program. Our intensive management practices have made us a number one choice for difficult youngsters and “high risk” pregnant mares. The results are tangible: Untrainable horses have gone on to the races and our farm has a 100% live foal percentage for every year. Our programs consistently exceed our client’s expectations, it is the number one reason our current facility is full to capacity.
Our “Full Circle” service : We genuinely love what we do and enjoy sharing with others! We build long-lasting relationships with our clients through constant communication and our abilities to procure the information and resources clients need to make knowledgeable decisions regarding their thoroughbred investments. We adhere to a high level of integrity and make sure we deliver as promised.
Our facilities and location : Our expanded facility will offer world class amenities in a conveniently accessible location for local and East Coast regional commutes.

5.2 Sales Strategy

Our marketing programs are designed to create a desire for new potential clients to contact us and schedule a visit to our farm as most sales within our industry are closed upon visual inspection of the facilities, personnel and current horses in training.

Our sales strategy therefore is to provide our clients with an immaculate, safe facility, staffed by knowledgeable, service-oriented people that allows them the opportunity to thoroughly inspect the quality of our programs and the health and condition of the horses in our care. We permit inspections during training hours and our clients are always welcome. These details, coupled with outstanding references and recorded results make closing the sale at a profitable margin possible and pleasant for all parties.

5.2.1 Sales Forecast

Sales forecasting is based on the yearly cycle of the demand for each particular service. Training requests will increase as the Fall months arrive and grow steadily into the Winter when they will stabilize. Broodmare services will begin to climb as Winter approaches and the foaling season begins (late Winter through Spring). The boarding of weanlings, yearlings and rehabilitative horses (classified together as Other in the sales charts) will begin to grow as the Fall months commence.

Our home-grown sales always occur during the fall months, it is the time of year when the market is actively looking to buy. The dramatic rise is sales reflects the expansion of our facility. Horses require lots of space and our current facility cannot handle a large number of horses. This expansion will enable us to make our services available to a larger group of clients and we will gain more market share.

Horse training business plan, strategy and implementation summary chart image

5.3 Marketing Strategy

Our top marketing strategy is an ecstatic client!

Ereidi Farm’s owner has extensive experience in developing marketing campaigns, direct mail campaigns, editing communications and utilizing technology. Our target market consists primarily of: Thoroughbred owners and breeders based outside of Pennsylvania, currently in deteriorating state racing/breeding programs; Pennsylvania thoroughbred owners and breeders who realize they must upgrade their programs to remain competitive in our state’s changing market; new investors in the thoroughbred industry, usually working within a partnership to minimize cost and risk while realizing a set quality level.

We will rely heavily on technology to generate awareness of our expansion, utilizing the Internet to reach those potential clients who are known Internet users. Our farm utilizes digital imaging, it was the number one reason for our increased sales in the past twelve months. Specific Internet sites in which to advertise our expansion have been identified and our farm maintains its own website.

We are building an e-mail mailing list to mass market at high speed. Selected print publications have been targeted to reach those in deteriorating racing states as well as potential new investors. We will increase our presence at industry sales, seminars and trade shows, continue to build our-business-to-business network and provide open houses (open farm days) for interested individuals to visit our farm.

5.4 Milestones

The accompanying table lists important program milestones, with dates and managers in charge, and budgets for each. The milestone schedule indicates our emphasis on planning for implementation.

What the table doesn’t show is the commitment behind it. Our business plan includes complete provisions for plan-vs.-actual analysis, and we will hold monthly follow-up meetings to discuss the variance and course corrections.

Web Plan Summary

The owner of Ereidi Farm built and maintains the farm’s website. The site was created to provide an Internet presence that represented the farm through digital images and text. Our farm site provides the viewer with actual images of the horses in our care and gives them a visual comparison, easily accessible when they are shopping for services.

The text gives us the opportunity to share our philosophy on horse care and condition plus supporting our sales photographs. Ereidi Farm has attracted new clients through its website. Due to our viewing audience, construction was done with overall ease of use in mind. We plan on adding digital video to the site in early fall of 2003, just in time for the sales and training seasons. Our Web address is: www.ereidifarm.net – Welcome!

6.1 Website Marketing Strategy

As our expansion occurs, the search engines will be reviewed and updated as will direct links to our site from other targeted sites. As viewers visit our site, their addresses will be utilized on our e-mail direct mail list.

All print advertising will feature the Web address as will all communications.

Management Summary management summary will include information about who's on your team and why they're the right people for the job, as well as your future hiring plans.">

The current management team consists of the owner and her husband. As expansion occurs we will expand our personnel as required beginning with a training manager to oversee the actual training of the horses.

As growth continues we will need to expand management opportunities into the broodmare, young stock, financial and maintenance areas. Long-term development might include a Stallion manager as well. All will report to the owner and the owner will maintain an in-depth contact with all horses on the farm as well as the clients themselves.

7.1 Personnel Plan

The Personnel table indicates the number of employees required during the initial expansion. This table will grow as the farm fills with client horses.

Additional employees that will be added during the expansion phase will be: additional grooms, exercise riders, maintenance workers, broodmare specialists and office workers. A stallion manager and specially skilled stallion grooms will be long-term additions.

Financial Plan investor-ready personnel plan .">

Ereidi Farm is intending to grow its cash profits by expanding to a larger turn-key facility. Although more expensive to purchase, a turn-key facility of world class quality allows the immediate generation of cash flow at the higher end of the market. The facility we are purchasing does not require the additional expenditure of capital resources to be fully functional, it is ready for business.

Our farm sells a service and does not maintain an inventory.

We operate on a “Cash Only” basis and choose our clients accordingly. It is very rare that we except payments of any type although we may do so when selling one of our home-grown foals to a well-known and trusted client. Our cash only approach allows us to maintain sufficient cash on hand and not waste valuable time and resources collecting amounts due.

At this time, the owner’s husband supplies additional capital as needed from his current job. He will continue in his current employ.

8.1 Important Assumptions

Important assumptions concerning the thoroughbred market and Ereidi Farm’s targeted market include:

The thoroughbred market industry in Pennsylvania will continue to grow. The added slot machine legislation will cause a dramatic growth spurt in racing programs within the state, quickly causing an increase in the demand for services within the state.

Statistics will continue to indicate the decline of racing programs in traditionally strong racing states. Owners of bloodstock within these distressed states will actively seek out new locations in which to relocate their horses and operate a profitable, quality stable.

New owners will invest in the industry, they will be reached by large industry umbrella operations such as the NTRA and TOBA. (National Thoroughbred Racing Association and Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association) respectively.

Our targeted markets will continue to post personal income growth despite fluctuating economic conditions. They will continue to invest in non-traditional “exotic” investments such as thoroughbred racehorses.

8.2 Break-even Analysis

Break-even assumptions are as follows:

Per unit cost is based off of one horse with total start up-units equal to 33 horses.
Variable costs include: salaries, advertising, maintenance and office expenses.
Fixed costs include: mortgage/loan, taxes, insurance, utilities and cost to keep 33 horses.

Break-even calculations are shown in the following table and chart.

Horse training business plan, financial plan chart image

8.3 Projected Profit and Loss

Our planned expansion realizes a profit after total expenses are deducted from gross profit. As growth occurs, expenses increase accordingly, however our net profit also continues to grow. This reflects the typical cost of doing business in the horse industry as a whole.

8.4 Projected Cash Flow

Ereidi Farm is a “Cash Only” type of business. Although we do accept payments for the horses we raise and sell, the rest of our business is cash based in order to increase cash flow and limit the farm’s liabilities.

8.5 Projected Balance Sheet

The balance sheet in the following table shows sufficient growth of net worth, and a sufficiently healthy financial position. The monthly estimates are included in the appendix.

Please note that specific variable and fixed expense categories have intentionally been left blank as these expenses are already figured into our “cost-per-horse” expense.

8.6 Business Ratios

Business ratios for the years of this plan are shown below. Industry profile ratios based on the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code 0752.0102, [Breeding services, horses: racing and non-racing], are shown for comparison.

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Buying a Thoroughbred racehorse is not a complicated process. But like many new matters, there needs to be enough planning and thought process beforehand to be sure you understand your goals, budget, timelines and overall objectives. The best way to accomplish this is to develop a business plan. It doesn’t have to be a complicated plan. A simple document that establishes key elements of your horse ownership will do the job. But many new Thoroughbred owners forget that their ownership should be approached as any business and having a plan is critical to your success. Manage your equine investments as you would manage any other investment or business activity, including exercising good, sound business judgment.

Lay out your objectives from the start

Establish your budget

Lay out your timetable

Decide where you plan to race & what type of racehorse you plan to own (colts, fillies, classic runners, claimers, etc)

Evaluate your ability to invest at the level you prefer and if you have any doubts about your ability to participate at this level, scale back. You can always move up once you learn more about the game.

Identify how & where you will purchase your racehorses

Decide if your horses will be insured

Select a qualified advisor(s) that understands your objectives.

Always establish what fees (if any) your advisor(s) charge for their services

Be rational not emotional and remember Thoroughbred ownership is a business

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Horse Boarding Business Plan Template & Guide [Updated 2024]
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The Ultimate Guide To Building An Equestrian Business

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Table of Contents

Glossary of Equestrian Business Terms

How to Start an Equestrian Business

What Is an Equestrian Business? A Brief Overview

How Big Is the Equestrian Industry?

How Much Is the Equestrian Industry Worth?

Horse Ranch

Equestrian Facility

Boarding Stable

Riding Stable

21 Equestrian Business Ideas

Boarding/Livery

Partial Boarding

Pasture Board

Self-Care Board

Short-Term Boarding

Retirement Boarding

Additional Arrangements

Training and Instruction

Breeding Operation

Full-Scale Breeding Operation

Riding Clinics

Tourist Ranches

Working Dude Ranch

Resort Ranch

Hunting Ranches

Horse-Related Adult Retreats

Horse Rescue