03/02/2026
I’ve been seeing this photo making the rounds for the last week or so, so here’s my take on it:
Make no mistake, this is basically every saddle company, County just has the balls to say it out loud and bluntly. These companies are a business, their job is to sell saddles, it’s the entire point of the company. The job of their reps is to sell saddles, and that’s the training they give them: sales. A lot of the companies that had a history of training their reps and using qualified and trained fitters are also going this route, I’m seeing it everywhere.
I didn’t get into saddle fitting to sell saddles, that was never the objective or point of the education for me. In fact, I spent close to 5 years in the field before I picked up my first line, Cavaletti, and I did that for a few reasons 1) convenience for my clients—it checked off a lot of the boxes frequently requested 2) anatomical gullet plate design 3) quality. Roughly 2 years ago I added Smart Saddles, another company that designed their saddles for the horse first, instead of for the rider. I don’t work for either company, I get no pressure from either company to sell for the sake of selling. Would they love it if I sold more? Sure, of course they would. But this is also why I choose to remain independent and always will. I’ll go back to having no lines before I’d ever take a position with a quota. But again, I understand they’ve got a business to run, and mouths to shelter and feed of their own, and that money is made with sales. We all just need to make sure it’s being done ethically.
