[QUOTE=Dewey;7969937]
Wow, if you sell beer, I may have to visit you! Beer and tack–what could be better? ;)[/QUOTE]
Good to know! This might just work!
[QUOTE=btswass;7969932]
Yes I heard about her! She does post here. Its a great idea. There are two levels to the barn we want to convert and we’d love to turn the bottom into a craft beer section. We are a very big craft beer area with lots of local breweries. Plus I know a lot more about beer than wine. I think its maybe easier to get a license to sell just beer vs wine a liquor as well. I’ll have to look into it. Thanks![/QUOTE]
Oooh, definitely add the beer! Sponsor ‘taste and tack’ nights:winkgrin: Or ‘spuds and saddles’, maybe ‘brews and bridles’?
I think it there is a poster that is located in Duchess County that was opening a distillery, was it SMF?
ET
One more thing! Higher Standards Leather Care!
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/showthread.php?399273-Bensmom-saddle-soap-the-review-thread-(if-that-s-okay-with-Bensmom)&highlight=bensmom+saddle+soap
http://www.higherstandardsleathercare.com/
https://www.etsy.com/shop/HigherStandardsFarm
https://www.facebook.com/HIgherStandardsFarm
(Last I knew, she would do wholesale)
[QUOTE=btswass;7969996]
Good to know! This might just work![/QUOTE]
I’m in Albany, beer and tack sounds fun! I would certainly come to say hello!
If you are hoping for some beer folks to browse the tack, you might want to have a section of horsey or “equestrian lifestyle” (how I hate that false phrase!) gifts. Beer customers might not have use for bell boots but they might have a horsey friend for whom that coffee mug is appropriate.
Maybe have a horsey theme in the beer section, horse heads on steins/glasses etc? Then carry the drinkware in the shop etc.
As for stocking the store, mainstays that folks need NOW. Fly spray to replace the bottle that someone stole the day before the show. Bell boots, halters, crops and gloves. Be particular about consignment. Become friendly with BO’s and BM’s and trainers at as many local barns as possible.
Customer service will earn you repeat customers. I agree about offering “services” like tack repair or blanket repair and cleaning. Be a good part of the local horse scene. (Not that I think that you aren’t already.) If the barn down the street if having a show and they have sent you business, open for a few hours as a courtesy for participants who forgot things. (Be sure to advertise your hours in their prize list!)
Mine would be a mix of dover and my local tack boutique + dover since dover doesn’t carry CWD, Devoucoux, or EDGEWOOD edgewood is a must. imagine that you just got a horse and try to make it so there are 2-4 of everything you’d need
My perfect tack shop would have a great gift section. As a kid, I’d stop into our local tack shop frequently for items like horsey candy & funny cartoon birthday cards. As an adult, I’m a huge fan of local artwork and horse-related books.
There was also a large consignment section at the local tack shop. They charged a relatively large fee just to drop it off, and all of the displays were clean & gleaming, so I assume the staff prepped the items as part of the display fee. I’m not sure how that would work as a new business - this shop had been there forever & their consignment was known to have a high turnover rate so no one begrudged the display fee.
Things I want a tack shop to carry: affordable american made leather goods if possible; if not, then english made or german made. I hate that the tack shops around here have pretty much just the common brands that are often imported, and are as expensive as some of the english and american made stuff that may not be as common of a brand! I end up ordering my bridles and stirrup leathers and such elsewhere as a result. I also want my tack shop to carry hardware related to horses, such as rein snaps, panic snaps, bolt snaps, etc.
My local tack shop is…not great. They carry everything, but it’s one of those places that started in someone’s garage, and then it took over their basement…and now they have a hoarding situation where saddles are stacked up to the ceiling and you can’t find a thing (the owners, of course, know where everything is, but it’s a PITA not to be able to browse and touch things myself).
My other complaint is their hours. They close at something like 6pm during the week, which doesn’t work for me since I work FT. And their Saturday hours are 10-3, which means I have to cut my barn time short if I need to make a trip to the tack shop. I know it’s a small business and they don’t want to be open 24/7, but I feel like I really have to reschedule my day to be able to shop there.
