I am heading to West Chester, PA this weekend. I might have bought my very first horse today so I have shopping to do. Any recommendations as to fun places to go? I have Dover and SmartPak stores at home so don’t need those (not that SmartPak has other stores than the wonderful one near me with the very exciting clearance section.)
Rick’s Heritage on Pottstown Pike. Right outside of West Chester. Loved shopping at Rick’s when I lived in that area since it was so close. congratulations on the new horse!
Rick’s is always fun, so is the Equine Exchange. They’re about 40 minutes from each other.
Bartville Harness is probably 40 minutes or so away, too. It’s the Amish tack shop that makes a lot of the Nunn Finer stuff.
Excellent info! This is going to be a fun trip.
Much pricier, but why not splurge - https://malvernsaddlery.com/?
Congratulations on your new horse.
P.S. Although Malvern Saddlery seems pricey, and some people think the staff is snooty/rude, I’ve bought some of my favorite stuff there. Their prices on quality items - e.g., Roeckl gloves, Pikeur breeches, Charles Owens helmets - is the same or less than Smartpak & Dover. You just won’t find the inexpensive brands. You might want to sign up for their rewards program before you go and get 15% off one item. . .just in case :winkgrin:
Bartville Harness shop is a bit of a stretch but worth the drive.
1245 Noble Rd, Christiana, PA 17509
It is Amish run, so bring cash or a check book as they cannot take credit cards. Their bridles are much better leather at a much better price. The only thing is, the bridles tend to run a bit big so we always get horse size with cob cheek pieces and that works best.
They also have belts, leads, halters, ability to custom order. If you custom order it takes about a month and you have to go back to pick it up so doing that will depend on if you are going to be in the area again.
Oooh, that sounds really tempting. I might not be in the area but my sister lives there so she could pick up and ship to me.
[QUOTE=scruffy the cat;8072167]
Oooh, that sounds really tempting. I might not be in the area but my sister lives there so she could pick up and ship to me.[/QUOTE]
You MUST go there! MUST!!! We get all our bridles and halters from there. They have the other standard fare as well - brushes, boots, some saddle pads, etc. They have some consignment saddles but I have never seen anything I liked. It is worth the trip, one of the bridles I use for schooling gets cleaned maybe twice a year, is used on multiple horses and the leather is still really soft and supple.
The nylon racing bridle I use is ideal for cross country. After a schooling on a hot summer day, just dunk in water, swish around with soap and all clean!
Sounds VERY appealing!
I went to Bartville Harness today. Thank you! What a treat. The new horse hasn’t had/passed his PPE yet so I am too superstitious to buy anything that could only be used for him but I got some stirrup leathers and some longeing supplies. What fun! If he needs a new bridle I’m going to send my sister to go pick me up one. Wonderful quality and prices!
LOVE Bartville! Glad you were able to check it out 
Glad you enjoyed the trip! With a sister in the area, I’m sure you will be back.
Bartville is AWESOME! They don’t have the selection some of the fancier places do, (except for bridles and halters, they have a metric crap ton of those) but their prices can’t be beat on what they do have. Fabulous place to go for buckets, barn supplies, strap goods, etc. etc. They even have my favorite Canter Mane and Tail! Cheap!! It takes me an hour to get there, so it is not great for quick one item runs, but perfect for stock ups. They will also custom make what you want to your measurements in strap goods, which is great for my in-between size mare.
It was great. I will definitely be back. The quality of the leather was wonderful. The option of customization at those reasonable prices was great.
I also got to Rick’s and that was fun, too. Good clearance area!
We need pictures of new stuff … on the new horse!
