Inspired both by the timeless elegance of formal equestrian turnout, and the latest advances in high-tech performance gear, the success of Moore’s Riding Wear’s over four decades has hinged on its ability to stay abreast of the ever-changing world of equestrian apparel.
A great deal has changed since June Moore designed and made her very first child’s riding jacket on the floor of her Clarkville home, more than 45 years ago.
The business is now run by June’s daughter Kate McMillan, and produces a vast range of riding jackets, hunting coats, dressage tails, formal turnout attire, as well as shirts, stocks and waistcoats.
And in Kate’s view, the secret for company’s longevity is simple. “It’s about being hands-on,” she says. “I think our success has come from having a horsey background – riding and competing. We have always been involved in the competition scene, across the different disciplines, and so we know what’s going on. The business grew by itself… progressing quietly and slowly.”
Humble beginnings
June (nee Rice) was a country girl, growing up on a small agricultural farm at Clarkville, on the north bank of the Waimakiriri River, where her family grew peas, potatoes, onions, and barley, as well as running around 100 sheep and a few cows. Horses were a huge part of life in the early days. “We used to ride everywhere back then, even in and out to Christchurch,” recalls June.
She attended St Margaret’s College, but without telling her parents, June left school at 16 and enrolled at the Hollywood School of Dressmaking. Within six weeks, she was given a working student’s position and spent the next three years learning the art of cutting, design and tailoring. “Tailoring was in the genes,” explains June. “I had two uncles who were tailors, and my mother was a dab hand at knitting and needlework.”
After she married Phil Moore, June began dressmaking at home, developing a loyal clientele. It was a natural progression into children’s clothing, after Kate and her brother Alex were born.
But when Kate began competing her pony at the age of five, June soon realised there was a gap in the market for well-made riding gear. “There was very little available back then, and what was available was very limited both colour and style-wise,” she recalls.
The riding jackets she made for Kate were widely admired, and soon June was asked to make them for others; it was the birth of Moore’s Riding Wear Ltd.
To start with, clients would bring their own fabric, and June would sew made-to-measure jackets using her own designs.
As the business grew, she employed a part-time tailor to help her, and eventually Kate herself joined the team full time.
Velvet-covered riding caps were all the rage in those days, and a busy sideline developed in re-covering; husband Phil was roped in to learn the technique from a retiring Ballantyne’s milliner.
“The hat business got quite big for us for a while, as people wanted their collars to match their caps,” explains Kate.
Travelling to shows around the country back then – as now – was an important part of the business, and the family regularly packed up the caravan and took their mobile shop to dozens of events all over New Zealand.
Changing times
Over the years, the business has evolved significantly, both to meet changing demand and to overcome challenges in the clothing industry.
To start with, the Moores were committed to sourcing locally-made fabrics wherever possible, but when the New Zealand mills began to close, there were problems with quality and supply.
By chance, while Kate was on holiday in Bali, a solution presented itself.
In the heat of Denpasar, she found herself in Sulawesi Street, Bali’s commercial textile centre, a stretch of road lined with dilapidated shophouses packed with fabrics from around the globe.
“The shops are like a rat hole, long, dark and narrow… there’s just shop after shop filled with fabrics… rows upon rows of material. There are cottons to make the shirts and stocks, as well as suiting fabrics, and buttons,” Kate says.
For a while, Moore’s imported fabric from Bali to make bespoke jackets. “We had a couple of samples that we worked from, people chose their fabrics, and we would go from there,” says Kate.
But more and more, she found, the time involved for the made-to-measure service was becoming an obstacle. “People wanted to try on jackets, and take them away with them on the spot. It’s a totally different way of shopping – people don’t want to wait; they want it now!”
This meant carrying a lot more stock, and it became clear that getting the jackets themselves made in Indonesia was the only viable option.
Over time, Kate has developed a strong relationship with their Bali-based tailor, who has been working with them for a decade now. He makes all of Moore’s jackets, aside from the hunting coats which are still made in New Zealand, and all the garments come to Kate’s workroom at home for finishing off and button-holing.
There is still a made-to-measure service available, and the off-the-rack jackets can be easily altered for a custom fit, as they have generous seams.
“It’s really important for us to stand by what’s being made, so if there are any issues or problems they come back to us and we can sort them out.”
Out-sourcing the tailoring has meant that Moore’s has been able to increase their range dramatically, and now carry more than 300 jackets in regular stock. “It just works much better this way. I don’t even miss making them myself,” says Kate. “I’m busy enough finishing them off, and answering queries.”
Pushing the envelope
From the beginning, Moore’s wasn’t afraid of experimenting with new styles and colour combinations. “We’ve always tried to do things a little bit different, while still keeping it tasteful. Back in 1973, I competed in a teal jacket. It was out there, but it worked,” Kate smiles. Nowadays, of course, almost anything goes!
“Styles have totally changed over the years, and the fabrics have changed hugely. It’s much more fun now, because there is just so much more out there to choose from. There are few rules; you just have to keep coming up with new ideas. The question is how far to go, before you cross the line from tasteful to being tacky.”
The addition of a stretch range has been one of Moore’s major successes in recent years. Following international trends of using more lightweight, comfortable and machine-washable fabrics, Kate found a supplier in Australia with an ideal range of fabric – originally designed for corporate wear – and sourced a stretchy lining in New Zealand.
The resulting garments have been a huge hit, from dressage to the show ring, and Kate says they are both versatile and flattering on all shapes and sizes.
In 2016, Moore’s launched a range of stretch dressage tails, which have personalised options including the divine and rather decadent faux snakeskin tail lining, which is popular with the more adventurous clients, Kate says. The stretch range now makes up more than half of the jackets sold.
The famous red jacket
Moore’s has had a long association with the Horse of the Year Show. From 2003, it made the iconic red jacket that went to the winner of Olympic Cup.
The idea for the jacket was borrowed from the world of golf – the US Masters green jackets, which have been awarded to each winner at the Augusta National Golf Club since 1949. “Kevin [Hansen, head of the company that ran HOY for many years] wanted something unique like the green jacket for HOY, and approached me to make it,” explains Kate.
To begin with, the Olympic Cup jacket was gold in colour, but after three years the decision was made to change it to red.
- This article was first published in the March 2017 issue of NZ Horse & Pony magazine. To subscribe, visit https://horseandponymag.com/product-category/subscriptions/
