Training Days
Here at The Saddle Bank delivering you our customers the best service possible is always at the forfront of everything we do.
So with that in mind the whole team regularly attend both in house and external training days.
This ensures that we keep our brand knowledge at the highest standard so we can assist our customers with queries they may have.
External Training Days
Any opportunity we are given to go on training days or visits to brands we supply for either demos, fitting days or tours we grab them with both hands!
Our external training days often see the team on road trips across the UK to visit brands for more in depth and hands on training as well as on zoom meetings with brands outside of the UK.
In early 2023 The Saddle Bank team spent two days with the fantastic team from Albion Saddlemakers, not only looking at the fit of these fabulous saddles but also a factory tour (with some hands on elements!) so they could see how the saddles are made and every step that goes into the manufacture of them, from the making of the trees to the finished product ready to go.
We have always believed in the importance of knowing about the brands we sell, not only from a marketing point of view but also an indepth knowledge of not only the models but also the fit and adjustability of them so we can assist our client and their owners on the best options for them. So when the Saddle Brands International team offered us to go on some training days with them we jumped at the chance!
We went through in depth and on a multitude of different horse/pony shape sizes what models could work on them across the three brands; Bates, Arena and Wintec and why. As well as discussing and demonstrating how the Easy Change Riser System is so beneficial to getting the most accurate fit for your horse.
(Saddle Banker Tori thoroughly enjoyed learning more about her dream saddle the Bates Artiste- so she new exactly what her horse Giovanni needed!)
In 2021 the team were invited onto a Zoom meeting with the founder and designer of Amerigo Saddles Peter Menet, organised by Zebra products where they learnt more about the brand, as well as the individual models of Amerigo saddles.
If you would like to learn more about Amerigo saddles click here!
The team in 2022 then headed over to Emily King and Sam Ecroyd's stunning yard in Wales to spend a day with Zebra Products and Equipe, looking at all the different models, tree types and blocks they have to offer.
It is always great to go and see the brands and models so you can really get a hands on feel for them, the team thoroughly enjoy it, so much so they are off to Zebra Products HQ August 2023 to spend more time learning about both Amerigo and Equipe to assist you, our customers even more.
In House Training
On in house training days these are generally focussed on any updates we may have upcoming or that require more system knowledge, our brand new website for example is one area we may focus on to ensure the whole team are able to easily and efficiently use it to help you with query's or order placing.
It also involves making sure our brand knowledge is refreshed and we can look at any new models or changes that have been made to any of the brands we stock.
Part of our training days is also ensuring the team are checking all incoming saddles are meticulously safety checked on arrival, this involves making sure that the saddles is sound as well as checking the stitching, flocking and leathers are all upto the super high standards we hold here at The Saddle Bank,
It's not just the team in the office/warehouse that get involved, on our last inhouse training day even our Marketing Manager Charl and Buyer Tori had a go at checking, cleaning and packaging up saddles ready to be dispatched!
In house training days generally also involve pizza and laughter... we're not always serious!
Overseas training days
It's not just training in the UK the Saddle Bankers take part in, to esnure we keep our knowledge upto date and relationships with the fabulous brands we stock the team also go on training days abroad.
In 2023 Jade, Tori and Yazmynn took part in a very informative two days training with Equipe over at the Equipe factory in Italy, where they learnt more about the saddle models and accessories they offer as well as a tour around the factory to watch the full process of how their fabulous saddles are made. They also took full advantage of the amazing Italian food on offer!
