The British Equestrian Association Prove A Real Hit Down-Under at Equitana Melbourne 2014

The British Equestrian Trade Association (BETA) has returned from a successful visit to Australia, where it accompanied a group of British companies to Equitana Melbourne 2014 – the southern hemisphere’s largest and most popular consumer equestrian show. BETA executive director Claire Williams reported that the association’s trade mission, for which it had secured funding from UK Trade & Investment (UKTI), had met with a positive response from the British delegates. “They were all extremely pleased with the visit,” she said. “It was certainly the busiest Equitana that I can remember and there was a tremendous amount of interest in new products, with people coming along to our stands looking for something that little bit different and taking a look at what British companies had to offer.” Rebecca Godfrey-Faussett, director of Wiltshire-based horse clothing business Snuggy Hoods, agreed. “It was the second time we have attended the show with BETA and it went very well,” she said. “We had lots of interest – the Australians really seem to like our products – and have gone on to make sales through our website since the show.” Other companies in the trade mission were Bliss of London, Equi-Ads, Equilibrium Products, Horse First, Horslyx, Loddon Engineering, Mount St John Equestrian, WB Stubbs and Griffin NuuMed. Equitana Melbourne 2014 featured a large shopping village with nearly 300 stands and opened its doors to thousands of visitors over the show’s four days. Last year 50,000 people passed through the doors and although official figures have not yet been released for this year, those in attendance said that they felt numbers were of a similar scale. Equestrian competitions included mounted games, showjumping, reining and barrel racing. The star of the show, however, was the UK’s own golden girl, Charlotte Dujardin, who took time out from her displays with former trainer and Grand Prix rider Judy Harvey to accept her Sky Sports Personality of the Year Award on a live TV link. With its extensive experience of overseas shows and global export markets, BETA is well placed to offer advice and support to companies seeking new trading opportunities and is able to secure significant funding for members of its trade missions through UK Trade & Investment (UKTI). For further information on taking part in future BETA trade missions, contact Laura Clegg, telephone 01937 587062 or email laurac@beta-int.com.