There are significant changes taking place in the equestrian industry, both at the elite and entry levels of the sport. This week, I want to focus on a trend I'm seeing in lesson programs: the growing emphasis on structuring riding instruction as a scalable, recurring revenue business. Subscription pricing, standardized curricula, group lessons and increased utilization of horses, instructors and facilities are being promoted as ways to improve profitability. The appeal is understandable but the results don't always match expectations, financially or operationally. When a business model depends on making instructors, horses and the riding experience increasingly interchangeable, it can change what customers expect, what they value and how they relate to horses and the professionals teaching them. Those changes have implications that extend well beyond the lesson program itself. What happens when we commoditize something that probably shouldn't be commoditized?...More

When I look back at myself as a younger horse professional, I actually had pretty good business instincts. I was in my thirties when I bought my equestrian facility in Santa Barbara, I knew owning the property could give me greater financial security. I understood the value of the property having rentals - passive income. I knew that becoming a better rider and trainer and working with better horses could lead to better clients and opportunities. I was resourceful, worked hard and made a lot of good decisions. What I didn't have were some of the tools I have now for seeing how all of those decisions interacted. I could see the individual pieces, but I couldn't always see the whole chessboard. I think that's true for a lot of horse professionals. Most are doing an enormous number of things right. They have good instincts, solve problems constantly and know their horses, clients and markets extraordinarily well. But they're also holding a tremendous amount of business and career...More

Most horse professionals already have more things competing for their attention than they have time to address. What is harder to find is a place to step outside the day-to-day demands of the business, think strategically about both the business and your professional career, talk through important decisions with people who understand the industry, and get help when you need it. So we're changing the way Equestrian Professional Membership works....More