How to Start a Horse Riding Business

If you have a little horse sense, you can turn the love for this animal into a moneymaking endeavor. Teaching horse riding can be very lucrative and you don't have to be an expert to do it. You do not even need to own a horse or stables.

Jenny Lee Doyle was a stay-at-home mother of four when she decided to do something about her desire to get back in the saddle again. In order to fight off the guilt that all moms feel when they decide to do something for themselves, she found a way to bring home the bacon, as well.

Because she grew up caring for, riding, and showing horses, Jenny Lee has the knowledge and experience to market herself as a horse-riding instructor. From September through May, she charges $175 for ten one-hour sessions. She teaches all ages and ability levels, but most of her students are school-age children. During the summer months, she offers one-week camps to make even more money.

When she first started teaching, Jenny Lee advertised as frequently and as cheaply as possible. Eventually, her classes filled up and now the yellow pages and word-of-mouth are her main advertising media.

The best part of Jenny Lee's set up is that she teaches the classes at someone else's stables. She uses their horses, their equipment, and their land. Because the stable owner is already being paid for the boarding and caring of the horses, Jenny Lee's overhead is virtually nothing. However, she does purchase insurance as a safeguard; this is always a wise decision with any type of business.

Boarding stables provide a good opportunity for enthusiastic horse-lovers to find students. The average person boarding horses could use refresher courses too. Most could use more than that. Moreover, not every horse boarder is interested in teaching.

If you have an interest in horses, but not the experience, you can still work your way into becoming a riding instructor. First, you could take lessons, yourself. In the beginning, it is true that you would only be able to teach the very basics. But you could pair up with someone like Jenny Lee and offer to instruct horse care classes, leaving the riding to the expert. In fact, if you aren't afraid of a little hard work, you might be able to negotiate a trade. You could do the "dirty work" in exchange for training on how to become an instructor.

Once you have gained the appropriate knowledge and experience, you can become creative in your packaging of different classes. Some stables offer birthday parties on the premises, especially if there are enough barnyard animals near by to make up a petting zoo. If the customer prefers, you could arrange to take a pony into town to a party. Classes could also be arranged through scouting and other youth programs.

If you have a little horse sense, you can turn the love for this animal into a moneymaking endeavor. With enough persistence, even beginners can cash in.