The global Equestrian industry is vast, valued at around $102 billion in the United States alone. How advantageous would it be, then, to have a one-stop online shop for equestrians of all stripes to purchase virtually any item that is needed for their craft, from stable to saddle and polo wraps to fly spray?
Enter Corro (https://corroshop.com), a new e-commerce platform that brings together a dizzying array of equine-tested and horse-approved products that allows horse owners to focus what they love the most – their horses.
“We like to say that we were founded and led by ‘horse people,’ for horse people,” said Jenny Stracke, and she should know.
Stracke, of Las Vegas and a 2009 graduate of William Woods, was one of the initial seven people hired by the company when it debuted in 2020. The company is a completely online shopping destination for all things horse where Stracke has made an impact in her short stay by creating some of its most popular features, most notably the Corro Top Rated (https://corroshop.com/corro-top-rated-program)program.
“We have had some of the top riders and trainers from the throughout the Equestrian community offer their expertise to help curate our tremendous assortment of products, and test them in a side-by-side competition as part of Corro Top Rated,” Stracke said. “These expert equestrians from all disciplines will test, review, and provide honest feedback about our wide variety of products, such as all-natural fly sprays, liniments, shine sprays, splint boots, and more.”
Some of those experts have included Roxanne Trunnell, an Olympic Gold Medalist and current number one ranked Para Dressage Rider in the world; number one ranked U.S. Vaulter (and number eight in the world) Kristian Roberts; top-ranked Japanese Showjumper Karen Polle and top-ranked Filipino Dressage rider Ellesse Gunderson.
Stracke’s other brainchildren for the company have included the Corro Barn Program (https://corroshop.com/corro-barn-program), in which large scale barns receive major discounts and rewards on the products they have to purchase for their barns, and the company’s Give-A-Gift Program (https://corroshop.com/give-a-gift), where Corro facilitates the wishlists of various equine charities.
The unique new company has been a dream come true for Stracke, who graduated from WWU with a bachelor’s in Math with a minor in Marketing and Equestrian Studies. After about a decade of dabbling in graduate school, working in hospitality in Las Vegas, and even touring the country in an RV, the offer to join Corro in 2020 proved to be a perfect fit.
“I get to combine my passion for horses, marketing, and giving back all at once with Corro,” she said. “Within my position, I create and manage programs that benefit our customers and strengthen the identity of our brand to be something you can get behind and depend on.”
And Stracke has helped build the company, her years at William Woods have always been top of mind for her. In fact, one of the experts from the Equestrian industry that she has tapped into to help rate Corro’s products under the Corro Top Rated Program has been none other than WWU Equestrian Studies Director and Professor Jennie Petterson.
‘I was excited to be approached by Corro about contributing to their efforts to use their retail platform to provide education to horse enthusiasts, and even more so because the initial contact was made by one of my former students,” said Petterson. “It is truly a special moment when the teacher becomes a professional colleague with their former pupil. Jenny is such a great example of the motivated and innovative students that came from our equestrian program.”
“Jenny and Corro have worked to build an innovative approach that brings curated products and expert equestrian advice to the horse enthusiast community,” Petterson continued. “ The articles and features in Corro Stories bring experts in all facets of the industry to Corro customers. It’s a different approach to providing both information and retail products that fills a niche in the industry. It’s always wonderful to see a graduate achieving success in the workplace.“
Stracke’s commitment going forward is to strengthen the tie between Corro and her alma mater. She has regularly donated Corro products to the WWU barns for student use and is currently working on potential sponsorships for William Woods-hosted horse shows. Going forward, she would like to utilize more WWU alums as experts for Corro Top Rated, feature William Woods equestrians in Corro articles and stories, and provide them with special discount deals on products they are already purchasing for their horses.
“It will always be a priority for me to give back to WWU whenever I can because I had such an incredible experience when I was a student there,” said Stracke. “I really like to help students become aware that they have many options when pursuing a career path that involves horses, and will do my best to help them where I can.”
For more on Corro, please visit https://corroshop.com/.
