Last checked October 2026
Set up a club ordering page, let members buy and pay for their own kit, and have it stitched to order. The club handles no money, no boxes and no leftover sizes, and the committee member who volunteered for this does not end up with forty hoodies in their spare room. For area competition teams, put the club name across the back where other clubs can read it.
Riding club kit is almost always organised by one committee member as an unpaid extra, and the traditional way of doing it punishes them for volunteering. Here is the version that does not.
Key takeaways
- Member-paid ordering removes stock risk, storage and chasing payments entirely
- Club funds stay in club funds rather than sitting in unsold mediums
- Back placement matters for teams; chest placement is for everyday wear
- Keep the list short — four pieces beats fourteen
- Riders need kit that works over a body protector, which changes sizing
- The club logo is drawn for thread once and reused free afterwards
Why committee bulk orders go wrong
The usual approach is to collect expressions of interest, guess the sizes, pay a supplier's minimum from club funds, then sell the kit at rallies and hope to break even. It fails for structural reasons rather than through anyone's incompetence.
| What happens | Why | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong size split | Interest lists are not orders; people change their minds | Unsold stock, usually the extremes |
| Club money tied up | Minimum order paid upfront from funds | Cash unavailable for the things members actually voted for |
| Someone stores it | No club premises | A volunteer's spare room for two years |
| Chasing payment | Kit handed over before money collected | Awkward conversations at rallies |
| New members miss out | One order per year | Anyone joining in March waits until next autumn |
The alternative
A club ordering page, open all year. Members order their own size, pay at the point of ordering, and the kit is stitched and posted to them. There is no minimum, so a single new member in March gets the same kit as everyone who ordered in September. The club's only job is sharing the link.
This removes the whole failure chain above. No club money at risk, no storage, no payment chasing, and nobody waiting for the next bulk run. It also means the committee role becomes a five-minute job rather than a season-long one, which makes it considerably easier to fill next year.
What to include
A workable short list
- Hoodie or fleece — the highest-uptake item by a distance
- Gilet — for committee, team managers and anyone officiating
- Polo — summer, and smart enough for prize-givings
- Saddlecloth — for area teams, where other clubs actually see it
- Beanie — cheap, no sizing problem, high uptake in winter
Four or five pieces is the right number. A long list splits demand, makes the page harder to use, and gives members decision fatigue over a £35 hoodie.
Placement for team kit
Everyday club kit carries a chest crest. Team kit for area competitions should carry the club name across the back, because the entire point is that other clubs and the organisers can identify you from the collecting ring.
A back mark is not simply the chest mark enlarged. It needs redrawing at the larger size, since detail that reads as crisp at 90mm can look coarse at 260mm. Any supplier who scales the same file to both is cutting a corner you will see.
Kit that works over a body protector
Worth flagging because it catches clubs out: riders wearing a gilet or jacket over a body protector need a size up from their normal fit, and the chest crest sits differently on the bulkier shape. If the kit is meant to be worn mounted, say so when ordering so sizing guidance accounts for it.
Your club logo and thread
Riding club logos tend to be old, drawn for a printed schedule or a website banner, and full of things thread cannot do — fine keylines, small lettering ringed around a badge, two greens that are almost the same green.
It needs redrawing for thread before it goes on anything. See how we draw a mark, or commission the Mark. If your club colours involve stripes or quarters, read why hoops, chevrons and halved colours fail in embroidery first.
Rowley & Bowes works with riding clubs, Pony Club branches and riding schools alongside the racing yards and studs around Newmarket. We set the ordering page up, members buy their own, and the club never handles stock or money.
Organising club kit this year?
Send us your logo in whatever form you have it and roughly how many members you have.
Send an enquiryFrequently asked questions
How do riding clubs order team kit without buying stock?
Through a club ordering page where members buy and pay for their own kit, which is then stitched to order and sent to them directly. The club commits no funds, stores nothing, and chases no payments. Because there is no minimum order, the page can stay open all year, so members who join mid-season get the same kit rather than waiting for the next bulk run.
Where should the club name go on team kit?
Across the back for anything worn at area competitions, since the purpose is being identifiable from the collecting ring and in photographs. Everyday club kit works better with a chest crest. A back mark should be redrawn at the larger size rather than scaled up from the chest version, because detail that looks crisp at 90mm can look coarse at 260mm.
How many items should a riding club offer?
Four or five. A hoodie or fleece will account for most orders, a gilet suits committee and team managers, a polo covers summer and prize-givings, and a beanie is cheap with no sizing difficulty. Add a saddlecloth if you field area teams. Longer lists split demand, complicate the page and rarely increase total uptake.
Does kit need to be sized differently to wear over a body protector?
Yes. A gilet or jacket worn over a body protector generally needs a size up from the rider's normal fit, and the chest crest sits differently on the bulkier shape. Tell your supplier the kit is intended to be worn mounted so the sizing guidance given to members accounts for it, rather than finding out after fifty people have ordered.
Clubs, schools & liveries · The Mark · Saddlecloth, numnah or square