Horobin Celebrates 30yrs
Horobin Saddlery Celebrates 30years of making saddles.
Marlee Horobin tells us all about it and what is happening with Horobin Saddlery.
We can’t believe it has been 30 years of making and fitting saddles. We love what we do, manufacturing, creating, designing, building relationships with customers to improve the harmony between horse and rider through saddle fit. We love to travel and absorb the stories of our clients and to see some of the gorgeous properties this country has to offer. We are continually researching into horse anatomy, technology and innovation and how we can continually evolve to ensure we will always be leaders in the equestrian & saddle manufacturing industry.
I love the connection that is made when someone stops me at a trade show or a saddle fitting to thank me for their experience on the website the helpful phone call they have received or the video we have created. It is great to hear people say ‘Rhys thanks mate you are doing a great job! Peter has trained you well’ Gone were the days with just Peter, we are now booking out full day saddle fits with Rhys as well.
Equitana was a crazy four days as usual, overall it was one of the best Equitana’s yet. The Alivia launch was extremely well received and I think every time we look at that saddle on a horse we think ‘geez that is a beautiful looking saddle.’ Manolo is also very impressed and happy with his creation.
November; Melbourne Cup: Protectionist & Andreas Wohler using StrideFree was AMAZING! Having the Melbourne Cup on the dinner table as a table decoration during dinner & watching the replay over and over in the lounge room was a pretty special experience.
Peter developed a new Adaptree which is now being used in ALL PH models. A true cutaway shoulder panel, (be careful of recent imitations) the saddles are now more beneficial for the horse’s anatomy then ever before. Evolving into lighter weight more adaptable saddle trees being one of the only saddle trees on the market place that can adjusted in the width & the angle.
Our trip to New Zealand, was a fabulous four days. The interest in PH saddles was sincere and welcoming and the food and wine… delicious! We even managed to go for a team run in the mornings before work to appreciate the Matakana scenery. It was great to have Manolo teaching alongside saddle fits as it was a real festive atmosphere, both Peter and I made the time to watch Manolo teach to learn more about his teachings and philosophies. It was extremely interesting and a positive experience.
We will be back in the North Island for Horse Of The Year
What is in store for this year? Well lets see, StrideFree is internationally growing from strength to strength with a brief visit to exhibit at BETA international in England where last year we won an award for innovation. Peter then arrives home, disembarks the plane and embarks on the Spirit of Tasmania (in the same day) for the Peter Horobin Saddlery Tasmanian Dressage Championships. Whilst this is happening Rhys & Chantelle will be taking the van up to the Canberra Royal Show where they will be exhibiting and saddle fitting. Rhys will be then back in the workshop making saddles with the team whilst Peter, Julie and myself head to NZ, hire a campervan and camp out at HOY. Saddle fittings, lectures (and more NZ indulgences we hope) fly back to Melbourne, a day of break and then Dressage With The Stars…
Did I mention this was all before Easter?!
Sometimes when there is so much white noise, you do ask yourself, what is the purpose of our business? Why do what we do and which road do we follow. The last 5 years especially, there has been a lot of change, some of it has been fun, some very, very challenging and at times extremely rewarding. So thank you for making us a part of your lives sometimes. We appreciate it and are excited about turning a page for a new chapter… And our purpose and goals…..’Not to be the largest saddlery in the world but to be the best saddlery in the world’ it might take a while but we will get there and we look forward to taking you on this journey with us.
Marlee Horobin
