You have the stalls and the space to match so you think- why not start a boarding operation? It’s great that you’ve taken to the Internet to do some research before jumping into your plans because a boarding business comes with quite a few responsibilities and it helps to know how exactly you should go about starting this enterprise. Here’s what you need to do to start a successful boarding business:
Business Plan
At the end of the day, this is a business after all and every business needs to start off with a business plan. This includes a Mission to keep you on track in reaching all those business goals, and a Unique Selling Proposition (USP) that will help you in all your future marketing endeavours. This essentially outlines how your business will differ from the competition so it’s great to have this outlined early on.
Boarding Site
Your site needs to have a number of things ready so be prepared to dish out the expenses if anything is lacking. Firstly, you need to have at least one barn with your stalls as well as plenty of storage space for things like bedding and feed. Security measures must be taken with safely fenced fields and paddocks. You’ll need to have your mowing equipment, tractors and water troughs ready. It’ll essentially have to meet all the regulations dictated by your state to be declared a legitimate zone.
The Services
It’s usual for a boarding stable to offer a combination of services for horse owners to choose from. These services include full board, partial board or pasture board. A full board is where you would provide a stall, turnout and take care of all basic maintenance. For partial board, the horse owner would be responsible for all daily care and you’d just be providing the stall. Pasture boarding, on the other hand, does not include a stall but keeps horses in a field- with access to shelter, of course.
Staff
The staff you intend on hiring is crucial to determining the success of your boarding operations. Usually operations that depend on pasture boarding can get by with fewer staff but those that depend on full boarding, will need more staff like grooms and barn managers on hand. Also keep in mind that different facilities and specialties will require staff specialized in those fields (for example, specialty care or boarding that caters to a discipline such as Western riding).
Pricingand Contracts
This is a business- so when it comes to your prices, you need to think competitively. With a bit of digging (on the Internet or through telephone inquiries) you can easily find out what price ranges you should be aiming for to stand a chance. Make it a point to create a boarding contract that specifies the services provided and the boarding for each horse.
You’ll give this to each owner to sign. This may also contain additional services and costs. You can also outline additional details to owners- for example, that while you offer security, owners should store all their equipment from the bit to their saddles appropriately to avoid any mishaps.
While you will definitely need to advertise your operations, with time, if you run excellent boarding operations, you’ll only need to run on word-of-mouth to get your business booming.
