Making ‘strides’ in equine world with new app

Ballymena native and software engineer Rachael Coulter has combined her two passions of equestrian life with the tech industry through the upcoming launch of her new app, ‘Stable Manager’.

The app is gaining traction and is set to become the de facto worldwide equine management solution.

Rachael has cultivated a passion for horses over the past sixteen years, and now specialises in dressage competing at national level.

Given her first-hand experience of competing, training and working in the equestrian sector, she felt there had to be an easier way to manage the necessary admin tasks.

Rachael said: “There is a huge admin side to working with horses in general that needed to be streamlined.

“Keeping the horses safe and well is the biggest priority and because of that it is necessary to ensure you are working with top class providers to care for your horses.

“Whilst working in a large-scale yard I saw first-hand the need for connectivity between equine service providers and horse owners.”

Following this, ‘light bulb moment’ Rachael combined her tech skill and passion and knowledge of the sector to create, Stable Manager, an app that enables advance booking and scheduling for horse owners and equine businesses.

The centralised platform connects horse owners of all levels from a single horse owner to instructional yards with a range of service providers such as physios, dentists, farriers, riding instructors and coaches.

Her career as a software engineer gave her the necessary skills to create the app herself, commenting on her IT background Rachael continued: “I’ve always loved working with horses, but at 18 I had to make a decision about what would be the best career path for me.

“I decided to study Computer Science at Queen’s University, Belfast to pursue a career in the tech space, which would allow me to continue my passion of dressage.

“Ultimately, it enabled me to launch, Stable Manage and is a fantastic example of the transposable skills that IT can provide.”

Rachael decided to make the move to work full-time on the project in August of last year, and comments how the pandemic made the app even more necessary,

She explained: “The pandemic brought many challenges to all businesses. For my industry, horses still needed to be cared for and kept in optimum health and the issues with Covid-19 meant that it was no longer possible to meet in person or connect in a traditional way.

“The centralised nature of the app means that in these tough times it is far easier and simpler to make connections with the necessary providers and owners whilst having the foresight to book and schedule in advance.”

The app is going from strength to strength, and Rachael has already secured funding as part of the IoD’s Women’s Leadership Conference.

She is also a member of, Impacting Founders and comments that she been so impressed with the support network available to female founders in Northern Ireland.

Rachael is currently working on an early-access launch for the app and it will be available for general release later in the year. In the meantime, she will continue to perform with her best friend Maya who has been her dressage horse for 11 years.

To sign up to the early access release of Stable Manager visit: https://www.stablemanager.tech/get-started

* Impacting Founders is a 10-week start up programme for NI-based female founders, facilitated by Startacus, in partnership with Young Enterprise NI, with a focus on pathways to growth, connections and legacy.

Supported by Ulster Bank, the programme aims to bring the best minds together to support local female founders on their journey and ultimately to develop the entrepreneurial strength of Northern Ireland.

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