Karen Hennessy

The Irish Sport Horse: a Test of Brand Equity Karen Hennessy

The Irish Sport Horse (ISH) is universally well known and is perceived as a strong brand. However, existing evidence indicates that this strong perception does not translate into premium prices, contra-indicating the implied relationships across the Brand Value Chain. This study assessed the Brand Equity of a number high profile European sport horse brands (ISH, KWPN, HANN) within the UK B2B sport horse market. A number of studies were involved in the process of developing and testing a Sport Horse Brand Equity Model including (1) a hendonic analysis of sport horse auction data, (2) a survey of Irish Sport Horse buyers and (3) a survey of UK buyers. The findings provide practical guidance for the Irish Sport Horse industry and other sport horse industries concerning the importance of improving/ enhancing and sustaining competition performance and reputation within the discipline of show jumping as a prerequisite to increasing/maintaining the financial value of a sport horse brand.