Mountain Horse - Daughter’s Cold Feet Created International Business! 28. October 2013 Jillian.Deane@robinsonsequestrian.com Miscellaneous (0) It’s 25 years since Lars Sjöswärd grew tired of his daughter Catherina always complaining that she was cold when she was riding. He and Catherina took matters into their own hands and created the world’s first winter-lined riding boots, Winter Rider, the hybrid riding shoes Easy Rider and the well-ventilated and cosy Rocky Mountain riding jacket. That was the start of Mountain Horse, and the rest is history. Today Mountain Horse’s products are sold in 35 countries but the company is still based on the same solid foundations as it was 25 years ago: fashion, function, safety and innovation. Clearly a lot has changed over the 25 years that Mountain Horse has been dressing the world’s riders but there’s also a lot that has remained the same: the company’s head office is still on the farm in the village of Vallda in Halland, the whole family is involved in the business and the philosophy that shoes and clothing must be stylish, high quality and practical hasn’t changed. What has changed over the years is customers’ knowledge and requirements: today’s customers are far more choosy than they were when the business first started, which suits Mountain Horse really well. Every year there are two new collections, one in the spring and one in the autumn and every year they launch a number of innovations in the form of built-in safety features, smart design solutions and new, functional materials for clothing, shoes and boots. Some 25 people currently work for Mountain Horse on Paradisets väg in Vallda. All design work is still done in house and many employees ride in their free time. Milestones in Mountain Horse’s history: 1988 Lars Sjöswärd founds Mountain Horse. 1988 Catherina and Lars develop the first successful products: the Winter Rider riding boots, the Easy Rider hybrid riding shoes and the Rocky Mountain winter jacket. 1992 The owner’s son, Bertil Sjöswärd, starts working for the company. He has experience of the sports shoe industry and drives the business forward, helping with international growth. 1994 The first Stirrup Control Sole is launched. 2000 The owner’s other son Rolf Sjöswärd joins the business as shoe design manager. 2000 Bertil Sjöswärd takes over as CEO from his father Lars who founded the business. 2000 Mountain Horse is the first company in Sweden to launch a riding shoe which is a certified safety shoe. 2002 Mountain Horse launches the world’s first safety shoe for children. 2003 Rolf Sjösvärd invents and starts developing the SCS3 safety and stirrup system. 2005 SCS3 is patented and the sole and associated stirrup are released on markets the world over. 2007 The Mountain Horse Pony Cup is launched and is an immediate success. 2013 Lars and all his children are totally committed to and active in the development and operation of the business. It’s a real family business. Check out the Mountain Horse Collection here. Tweet