It all started with a pickup truck and a passion for
riding.
The Tack Room was
started in 1954 by legendary polo player Cyril Harrison, who sold tack out of
the back of his truck. Well known Camden horsewoman Hope Cooper eventually
converted it into a storefront business. By 1963, The Tack Room had made its
way into the Cushmans' lives, starting with Ida Cushman, John's mother, who
purchased it from Cooper. It has been a family owned enterprise ever since.
John and Sandy
bought The Tack Room from Ida in 1978. Although a smaller business venture at
the time, the store consistently performed well. Moving from one building to
another slightly larger one certainly helped The Tack Room's expansion, but its
shelves still filled quickly. From there, the business continued to grow at a rapid rate and space
became a necessity. When the Winn Dixie of Camden decided to close its doors,
John Cushman saw an opportunity knocking. He had a vision of what this business
could be, and he knew this building could make it happen.
After months of construction, the old grocery store blossomed into a horseman's shopping mecca right in the heart of Camden. Now, we are in our 33,000 sq. ft. brick and mortar store we call home.
The demands of the family business grew along with its customer base and inventory, pulling in John and Sandy's oldest daughter, Adriane Potter, and her husband, Jonathan. The Tack Room continued to thrive and with the additions of an online store in 2009 and mobile unit in 2011, the business soon became known across the country.
Making appearances at many of the local horse shows became a priority, but the real journey began with a 44' cargo trailer fitted into a full on road worthy storefront.
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| In 2011, the mobile unit hit the road. |
The mobile unit was such a success that after a single year of travel, yet another upgrade was needed, this time in the form of a very yellow NASCAR vendor trailer. Meant to house two simulator cars, this rig included a large pop-out with more than enough space to fill shelves and allow customers to shop comfortably.
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| The new mobile before its transformation into 'Big Blue'. |
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| In 2013, the upgraded unit began its travels as our current 50' mobile store. |
The website pushed The Tack Room even further across the country
with orders coming in from as far away as Hawaii and Alaska, all the way to Maine, and
everywhere in between. Outfitted with a wide variety of high quality products for both horse and rider, our goal is to ensure each and every customer enjoys a pleasant, productive shopping experience. With friendly, knowledgeable staff and a large inventory, we strive to provide horsemen everywhere with the product they need at the price they want.
Throughout the years, The Tack Room has always relied on its loyal customers to keep the business alive and thriving. For all of your support, we cannot thank you enough.