“What do you think,” my friend asked excitedly!  She had just shown me all around the horse property she was going to be renting.  It included a terrific brick ten-stall barn with a neat, clean loft apartment above it where she would be living.  The property had a nice sized outdoor arena and six small pastures.  This opportunity would allow her to have her horses at home while running a small boarding facility in an upscale suburb of the city.  Wow, what a find! 

There was a lot of cleaning to do, but being able to envision the place full of boarders and invigorated with life and the right energy made me smile too!  “I couldn’t be happier for you.  What a great deal.” 

The barn just needed a good cleaning and a bit of paint to freshen and lighten the environment.  It’s amazing what those two things can do for any place.

I reminded her that as long as the stalls and the turnouts were clean and had pasture or hay, the horses would be fine.  The “eye appeal” of the property is all about the owner.  Funny, how that works, isn’t it?  Just look at any catalog jammed packed full of horse stuff and realize who the stuff is really meant to satisfy.  A horse doesn’t require three-fourths of the products displayed in a catalog.    

We talked about all the ways she could make it marketable and the assets the property offered and how she could make this venture profitable.  With the landowner’s great reputation and the previous trainer’s valuable input, this was definitely a project that would have a future.  We talked about how she could market the place. The previous trainer had been hunter/jumper and marketed to that.  My friend’s vision was different.  

We talked about barn rules and realizing that this will be a great management opportunity for her as well.  She realized the necessity and the import of establishing clear communication with her boarders.  If you have ever been around a boarding facility in any capacity, you know what I’m talking about.

As I left my friend that afternoon, I realized the amount of responsibility, dedication, hard work and the true test that this experience would give her, not only as a horse owner, but also as a business woman.  Wow, what an opportunity!