Are these prices reasonable?

[becca_22]

I'm just doing a bit of "market research" about DIY & Grass Livery prices, as I'm considering setting up something along these lines in a few years time, and would like to get some opinions as to whether these prices seem reasonable for what I would be planning to offer.

Location: Surrey or Surrey/West Sussex border
2 smaller traditional/outdoor yards (say one of 14 stables, and one of 6 for arguments sake) by Scotts of Thrapston or similar quality.

All stables to have rubber matting floor, automatic water drinkers, hay bar, and rear window in addition to open top door.

Both yards to have wash down bay with hot & cold water shower, coin-operated solarium, tack room space for 2 sets of tack with optional tack lockers for extra security (small extra monthly charge to cover cost of purchasing them), rug room with heated rug rails and a rug box/trunk per stable, feed room, tea/coffee making facilities, WC.

At least 30 acres of grazing + all-weather turnout pens for lamintics etc. All pens/fields to have automatic troughs, slow feeding hay racks, field shelters with matting & a sprinkling of bedding

25m x 60m school with Andrews Bowen or Martin Collins surface, arena mirrors, jumps & lights
On-site hacking (mix of woodland & open fields - (poss all-weather canter track too).

Parking for horseboxes/trailers

Owner (BHS II) living on-site and available for lessons

Hay & bedding provided to stop arguments, people forgetting to order, lots of deliveries turning up randomly & annoying neighbours etc.

Grass Livery - all facilities (except stable) + hay included = £45 per week
DIY Livery - all facilities + 3 bags of dust extracted bedding + hay included = £60 per week

Baring in mind this will be Surrey/West Sussex (not up North!) - do these prices sound reasonable?

TIA

 

[Flicker]

I’d pay that. Sounds a nice set up. Prices not a million miles away from livery prices in my area, and we’re definitely not in as affluent an area as Surrey.

 

[lannerch]

Sounds too cheap
In Cheshire a cheaper area, admittedly with an indoor school and farm ride , hay or haylege included but not bedding the price per week is £52 .

 

[becca_22]

Thank you Flicker

 

[be positive]

The prices are reasonable but your profit will be low and unless you have a substantial private income or can pay for the start up without any borrowing you will be lucky to make it worthwhile, the DIY will bring in under £30 per week by the time you provide bedding and hay, that is not taking into account normal overheads such as insurance, water, electric, there is general maintenance to pay for, grass livery will be popular but again by the time you have provided the paddock, maintained it and supplied hay there will be little left to show for it.

You may make some extra by teaching but you probably need to rethink the livery side of things to make it a realistic business, full or part liveries will bring in far more every month as would offering specialist services such as rehab or a track system for laminitics, I have had liveries for years and DIY's rarely bring in enough to make it worth doing other than as an add on to full liveries.

 

[Theocat]

On the basis that you probably can't supply dust extracted bedding for less than a fiver a bale, you are charging nothing extra at all for providing a stable. I know grazing costs money but nearly everyone will expect to pay more for a stable.

Your storage sounds limited - tack and rugs are one thing, but most people will have boxes and trunks full of all sorts of stuff.

Unless the land is miraculous, I don't think you'll have enough of it to.offer grazing all year round and make your own hay for twenty stabled horses (plus grass liveries).

I think you could put the prices up - and I think you'll need to to make any decent return! There are cheap ways you can add value - for example, offering daily checks on grass liveries is worth charging more for, and very easy to do when you're doing checks of water / fencing etc. You could still charge other services as extras.

 

[Cecile]

One idea if space/time allows, I had to work really hard to place mine into full livery for a month whilst work was taking place on my yard,
they all have the same/similar requirements, happy to be together, don't need acres of grazing (Minimum is ideal), I supplied the feed to keep them in the same routine
and I was quite happy to pay a premium to know I could sort out the work at the yard without worrying about them - short term livery or holiday livery would be worth looking at
to see if there is a demand in your area (Minimum of a month as any less than that I can't see could be viable)

 

[Sussexbythesea]

I pay £175 pcm just for DIY livery with stable. We don’t have hot and cold washroom or solarium but the rest we have. The grass livery sounds on the expensive side as in the summer you’re unlikely to need any hay unless your grazing is very poor. The stabled option sounds reasonable over the whole year but again at the moment I’m using very little hay or beddding because mine is out at night. Probably spending about £30 a month on hay, bedding and feed combined. In winter obviously a lot more over £100.

However also I’d probably not like being dictated to about bedding and hay because it might not suit my horses needs. I’m wary of this because I’ve found in the past YO to be stingy and inflexible.

You’d have to be clear how much hay was included and how much it would cost to buy more if required. A 12.2 going to need very little whilst a 16.2hh TB may need loads I would not want to be paying for a lot of stuff I just don’t need. Could you just order in what people need/ want and have one delivery instead? I would also not like to be tied to one instructor if this is your business model.

 

[Sheep]

It sounds maybe a bit too "reasonable" for the area, which I guess is substantially more expensive than where I am. I pay £38pw for stable, morning feed & TO, inc. ad lib hay/haylage, year round turnout (24/7 May - Sept), floodlit school, good hacking and lots of storage (including trailer or lorry if needed), on-site toilet etc too and automatic drinkers in stables and most fields. I think my yard is excellent value and wouldn't be upset if they increase prices. I'm in Northern Ireland.
Your proposed set up sounds good!