Paris-based HorseCom, a company that designs and develops Bluetooth technologies for horses and riders in order to enhance the abilities, well-being and performance of horses, has completed an initial €1 million fund-raising round.
The funds have been invested by Quadrivium 1, seed fund managed by Seventure Partners. It will enable HorseCom to start marketing its first connected audio kit for horses and riders.
HorseCom’s audio kit consists of a Bluetooth earpiece for the rider, a cap equipped with a Bluetooth receiver, a pair of earphones for the horse and a mobile application. It uses an innovative patented technology developed with ethologists from the University of Caen’s Memory and Behavioural Plasticity Group (GMPC), the Pluridisciplinary Institute Hubert Curien (IPHC), French National Research Institute CNRS and the University of Strasbourg.
The HorseCom kit has been tested by instructors and competition riders, and is intended to complement existing approaches to deliver a step-change in the horse-rider relationship. By playing music, tailored to the horse sensibilities, to various exercises and contexts, it creates greater harmony between horse and rider. The rider communicates with the horse within a specific sound environment, helping to relax the horse by insulating it partly from external noises.
Regular use of the HorseCom kit:
– Reduces stress to the horse when being treated by a vet or a farrier, without the use of drugs.
– Facilitates speed work.
– Allows a coach to speak to a pupil and horse using his/her telephone, thus enhancing performance
Hugo Kajdas, chairman and founder of HorseCom, made the following comments on this important milestone in the company’s development: “This financing will enable us to roll out the marketing of our first product, which has received a great deal of support from the equine community. All behavioural studies carried out in collaboration with our scientific partners show that our technology significantly reduces the impact of stressful situations on the horse. We will now be able to pursue our marketing plan, in France and abroad, start developing new technology modules and introduce novel teaching resources for instructors.”
Horseriding is the third most practised sport in France after football and tennis, and is growing rapidly. It represents a market worth €7.35 billion per year. There are 50 million regular horseriders, including 2.2 million in France, and the number is growing by 5% per year in Europe. 15 million people own a horse, including 600,000 in France.
HorseCom meets a key requirement of riders: although there are products on the market that claim to enhance the wellbeing of sport horses, there has been no scientifically proven low-impact solution for enhancing horses’ comfort and performance until now.
For Philippe Tramoy, partner at the Quadrivium 1 seed fund, “HorseCom has all the ingredients to establish itself as a premium brand in the equine market. The product has been validated by renowned scientists and supported from the outset by institutional partners. This has enabled HorseCom to design and finance a product that meets the market’s requirements.”
HorseCom’s technology represents a new era for enhancing the performance of horses and riders.
