Featured Athlete: Terry And Julia Moore

Terry and Julia Moore, and their daughter Rachel Lowrey, are bringing the best products possible to horsemen and women.
Through their company, 5 Star Equine Products & Supplies, Inc., they provide high quality saddle pads, cinches, and equestrian sport and bell boots.
It all started in 2012, when they purchased the business from Mike and Laurel Easton.
Laurel and her first husband, Vernon Wells, had moved from Canada to Texas then later to Mena, Arkansas, to open their business in the States in 1998.
But before they could get started, Vernon suffered a heart attack and passed away.
Laurel, a master sewer who had been sewing since she was a child, vowed to carry on the business. When she met and married Mike, the two continued with the 5 Star Equine Products Company.
But in 2012, they were ready to sell.
Terry, a third generation logger living in Dierks, Arkansas, had owned a small wood shaving business, buying material from saw mills, bagging it, and selling it.
Mike and Laurel were in the process of selling 5 Star Equine Products to a different person, but when the bank work didn’t go through, Terry was interested.
Terry’s daughter, Amanda, was an accountant and tax lawyer, and she and her dad visited the business, looking it over. He was impressed with the product and how Laurel and Mike had run the company, and he thought it would be a great place for him to work alongside his daughters, so he bought it.
5 Star Equine manufactures saddle pads and cinches and sells equestrian boots. The saddle pads and cinches are manufactured on site, with the best possible materials used for them. They use 100% wool, the same product Vernon and Laura used when they started the business years ago.
The saddle pads are very durable. Terry sometimes gets pictures from customers of their saddle pads, more than 20 years old and still in use.
The cinches are made of 100% mohair; the only item they sell that isn’t made in-house are the equestrian boots, which 5 Star Equine puts their brand on.
“We have not changed what Vernon, Laurel and Mike started,” Terry said.
What has changed with 5 Star Equine over the years are the possible customizations. “We added styles and colors, different looks of leather, but the basic pad is still the basic. It’s what we build everything around,” he said.
Customers are able to customize their saddle pads and purchase online. “We built our online stores so people can go there,” Terry said. “We have so many options in styles, thicknesses, sizes and colors. We have about 50 wear leathers they can decorate with, hand tooled, with corner plates and embroidery.” When customers have chosen their options online, they can see the saddle pad built on the screen, with their customizations.
They’ve grown the business, selling close to five times more saddle pads than in 2012. Business is booming, Terry said. Last year, sales were up 35%; this year, to date, they’re up 20% over last year.
5 Star Equine has dealers across the world, from Germany to Switzerland and even Australia. When he advertises, he doesn’t like to preach at people to buy 5 Star products, but educates them “on what this pad will do for them, helping them help their horse feel better and perform better. We’re all about their horses, helping these performance horses perform better for their owners.”
The Moores married in 1979 and later made the decision to have a family hobby they and their children could enjoy. Both had ridden horses in their youth, so they chose horses.
“We got into the horse deal in 1980, and we’ve never been without horses since,” he said.
His daughters, Amanda, who passed away in 2014 in a motorcycle accident, and Rachel, competed in Arkansas youth horse shows and American Quarter Horse shows. Both girls were state barrel racing champions, and Rachel won The All American Congress twice in youth barrels. His wife, Julia, is a retired elementary school teacher.
Terry has grown the business from three employees to 23 and has nearly tripled factory space. He’s proud that he can offer good jobs in Mena, Arkansas. “I like that we’re able to provide jobs for families, and they’re dependable and steady jobs.” He’s grateful for his workers. “We have a core of employees that are good. We’ve built good relationships with them. We’ve been tremendously blessed.”
But it all goes back to the superior products his people create.
“When we put it on paper, it will do exactly what we say it will do. It performs in the field. That’s the main reason it’s grown. Our customers are our best marketing agent. That’s how it’s grown.”