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Equine transport market (both ground and air) in the US: What roles exist in the market overall, which companies are major players within each market "role", and how does each company perform financially?
According to an article released by Equo, the estimated current total number of horses in the United States as per partnership study commissioned and conducted by the American Horse Council Foundation and the Barents Group is 9.2 million. This number includes both recreational and commercial horses. Of the 9.2 million horses in the United States, 3.91 million are used for recreational purposes, 2.72 million for showing, 840,000 are used for racing and 1.75 million for other activities like farm work, rodeo, polo and police works.
According to the report, the horse industry "impacts the American economy in greater measure" and created a full time and part-time jobs to more than 700,000 people. The estimated horse owners in the US is at 2 million while the total number of Americans directly involved in the industry as "owners, service providers, employees and volunteers" is 7.1 million.
COMPANIES INVOLVED IN EQUINE TRANSPORT
From the database of OHorse — an international horse directory, there is a total of 157 horse transportation companies in the United States, consists of both trailering and flight companies. Below you will find companies including their brief roles/services and their estimated annual revenues that I was able to acquire from various company profiles and financial databases like Owler, Manta, Hoovers and FindTheCompany. However, in order to determine the top or leading companies, their revenues must need to be identified. Most of these companies do not reveal their revenues and profits publicly, thus it is difficult for me to determine the top. What I will be providing below are some of these companies (from National Horse Carriers Association members' list and OHorse database) that are considered industry leaders with identified revenues and with a summary of their major services/roles in the horse transportation industry. I have provided companies that are involved either both or for land/trailering and air freight services.
1. uShip is a horse transporter company that has an estimated annual revenue of $12.0 million. The company provides horse trailer for transport. Their cost for horse transport depends on the distance and any specific horse needs. "On average, it costs $2.66 per mile for horse transport less than 100 miles, but costs $0.98 per mile for horse transport less than 1000 miles."
2. Bob Hubbard Horse Transportation Inc. provides horse transportation services i.e. fleet, with terminals in California, Florida, Washington and Kentucky. The company's annual revenue is reported to be at $9.2 million.
3. C & E Horse Transportation, Inc. is a "fully licensed and insured horse carrier who offers local, 24-hr emergency service and long-distance shipping originating in Chicagoland to all points in the Midwest and East Coast." The company gains $1.8 million in revenue.
4. Bateman Horse Vans is a commercial horse carrier and operate air-ride tractor trailers nationwide. This company makes $1.8 million revenue annually.
5. International Racehorse Transport, Inc. provides air freight horse transportation services within the United States and internationally. The company's reported annual revenue was at $1.3 million.
6. Apollo Equine Transport, Inc. is a full-service air horse transport company. They handle all shipping services, both import and export and communicate with customs on the owner's behalf. The company makes an estimated revenue of $550,000.
7. Equiflight, LLC provides horse transportation both in land and air transport services within the United States and Canada. The company's reported annual revenue was at $242,180.
8. Anderson Horse Transportation is an organization in the trucking companies industry for horse transport. This company operates locally and generates a revenue of $157,404 annually.
9. EMC Horse Transport is a "licensed and bonded freight shipping and trucking company" running freight hauling business for horse transport. The company's annual revenue was at $96,313.
10. American Horse Trailer Rental Inc. operates as a utility trailer rental in the horse transportation industry. It generates an annual revenue of $85,000.
MAJOR ROLES IN EQUINE TRANSPORT
According to an analysis from Simply Hired, a horse transporter (a person who works in the horse transportation industry) makes an average income of $70,000 annually, while a professional equestrian makes an average of $56,000 annually. Other major roles are summarized below with their average income generated from working in the horse transport industry.
Other major roles:
CONCLUSION
The US equine transport market is fragmented in nature with various transport companies offering services for hauling, horse trailers, fleets, rentals, air freight/shipping services, horse handling and others. The revenue generated for each company is significantly dependent on how wide the scope of services they provide and their geographical reach. The average annual income of a person working in the horse transportation industry is $70,000.