A new (tiny and adorable) member of the team has arrived…

This month has been a very special one for The Horse Bit Bank. We’re absolutely thrilled to announce that our founder Jodie and her partner Mark have welcomed their first baby! Little Max arrived at the start of November, and we hope that Jodie and Mark are enjoying every moment of their new roles as parents - even if they would probably love to be getting a little more sleep…! We’re sure that Jodie will use her maternity leave well, no doubt starting her search for the perfect starter pony asap!

With this heartwarming news in mind, we thought that it would be fitting for this month’s blog to share some of Jodie’s backstory and how she came to run The Horse Bit Bank. With so much information about businesses shared on social media these days it’s easy to forget that there are real people with interesting stories behind every single one! So, without further ado, let’s get going.

Jodie started the Horse Bit Bank back in 2009, which means we’ll be celebrating an amazing 15 years in business next year! With so many smaller businesses failing in their first five years, it's testament to Jodie’s innovative business model and her hard work and determination that we’re here and thriving. So where did the idea for The Horse Bit Bank come from?

Well, Jodie had been involved with horses for many years, with decades of experience working with and competing sports horses. Jodie also breeds horses and has some great success in the show ring! This year her home-bred mare Papaver Dior - known at home as Poppy – qualified for the non-native coloured horse class at the Horse of the Year Show. Poppy is produced by James Knight, and she’s overcome quite a few tough times on her journey, including being hand raised and having a huge ovarian tumour removed.

Jodie’s passion for competition horses coincided with a time when there was a huge amount of research and development into mouth confirmation and bit design. As well as new bits being released all the time, the ‘old ways’ of doing things were being challenged too. For example, people learnt that for many horses, a single-jointed snaffle wasn’t a kind, easy bit for horses with low palettes or sensitive tongues. The idea that just a wrinkle or two in the corner of the mouth meant a bit was the right height was soon discounted too, with riders encouraged to check where it sits on the bars instead. Now, horse owners could start to choose from heaps of different innovative materials and kinder, anatomically shaped mouthpieces. Jodie soon became fascinated with the action of the myriad different mouthpieces and cheekpieces, as well as how a horse’s mouth confirmation impacts which is the right bit.

This information meant Jodie was soon advising friends and colleagues on the different bit brands and what they could try for their horse. Most riders will at some point come up against a bitting challenge or two, and with so much choice out there, a little advice and steer in the right direction is a huge help. Jodie knew the brands and their designs inside out and decided to share both her knowledge and an exciting new approach to selling bits with the world. That idea was to enable owners to try out as many bits as they liked until they found the right one, without having to buy them all. That’s why here at the Horse Bit Bank we allow people to try bits on a 30-day trial so that they can see for themselves how their horse goes in it. The only exclusions we have are on bits with soft mouthpieces, such as our Happy Mouth designs.

That approach has helped countless owners get the right bit for their horse after struggling for months. It’s also ensured young horses and ponies start their education in bits that fit and suit them perfectly, thanks to their owners calling our free advice line to see what the latest thinking on breaking bits is. We’re so proud to have been helping riders find the perfect bit for their horses for nearly 15 years, and here’s to another 15!