FOLLOWING THE CHRIS ANDERSON RACING STABLE

By HRO | Friday, April 8, 2016

Chris Anderson knows just how multi-faceted the makeup of a modern racing stable is and he has developed his brand accordingly. The combination of his solid business and racing background, coupled with his people skills, makes it easy to understand why the Anderson stable is a stable on the way up. Here he tells his own story.

There are various things that work to my advantage as a racehorse trainer.

Firstly, like any other business, you have to deal with clients. Owners who place horses with you are your customers and you have to maintain a professional, friendly and honest relationship with them.

I got into the people business very early, by default actually. That all started when I worked in a bar after finishing school at Nudgee College to help pay my way through University. I was studying criminology. I was looking to work for the police force and, to cut a long story short, I was offered a job as a sales rep whilst working at the pub.

It had become apparent that not only did I like communicating with people, but I seemed to do it pretty well.

It all started from there. I became a beer rep which was an amazing job when you are in your early twenties with a company car and several other perks.

I was very fortunate to excel in that position and was promoted firstly to state manager in Sydney and then to a national beer brand manager.

When the British Lions were here in 2000, I travelled with them for three months as the National Beer Brand Manager. It was just a phenomenal time.

I didn’t necessarily realise the full extent of it then, but during my dealings with a variety of people on different levels, I did have to maintain a very high level of performance.

The skill set I gaine in terms of dealing with people during that time has really served me well ever since.

Although the communication skills were acquired away from the racing industry, the experience has greatly influenced the way in which I conduct my training business.

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The second point underlining my credentials to run a successful training business comes in the fact that I have also had a solid grounding in the world of hard business.

While my lifestyle had been as good as it gets in my early career, it really is something that can only be sustained for so long before your start to reassess your options.

Eventually I was keen to come back to Brisbane. I did that and got a position back here as a State Manager with a global liquor company, Independent Distillers. One of the clients I managed was the CEO of the Hedley Hotel Liquor Group.

Through that relationship we bought a pub, or should we say leased the old Orient Hotel. I am probably a bit of a risk-taker, but I’m a calculated risk-taker.

The decisions I make also have got a lot to do with self-belief. I’ve got a lot of self-belief.

Some people did query why I would lease a business losing a quarter of a million dollars a year, but that’s where the risk-taking, the ability to see the big picture and the self-belief to follow through comes into play.

It’s all about backing yourself and, happily, we were able to walk away from that venture with a very healthy profit at the end of the day.

That period of my life incorporated a massive amount of business experience. I was dealing with head buyers from Woolworths and Coles through that liquor industry. There was no tougher negotiation than dealing with their reps while trying to create favourable trading terms for your own company.

On occasions, I was having to give presentations to in excess of two hundred people at conferences which was really challenging.I would get so nervous and think why am I doing this, but now I look back and think it was invaluable learning experience.

I credit all of that background, the combination of people skills and business expertise, as the reason my stable has grown from one leased horse to twenty-two horses currently in work, and I’m desperate for more boxes with over forty-five horses on my books.

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I’ve always been passionate about horse racing and maybe that’s because it’s been in my family for generations. My grandfather, my uncle and my cousin were all trainers.

About 10 years ago I realised that I wanted to learn more about the racing industry and the horses, so I started working for my cousin, and studying courses about horse anatomy and equine science.

Further down the track I continued to work for some other top trainers, while continuing to work a full time job, whilst having three kids under the age of two (twin girls – Millicent and Isabella and a boy – Angus).

After many years of hard work, experience and study, I’m now very confident in my training techniques!

Steven Morley from Glenlogan Park also had an important input along the way. When I was going through the early stages of deciding to go into training, Steve invited me out to the farm. Steve was great because he was independent from the people I knew, and who I’d been talking to, and he was able to give me independent advice which helped me gain a balanced view of what I was about to do.

A lot of people at the time were asking if I was certain this was something I was willing to pursue at this stage of my life. I just imagined that I didn’t want to be getting on in life and regret not following my passion. I’m a big believer that you should never allow anyone to dictate and determine what one should do in their life.

I also respond very differently to criticism or people who doubt what I can achieve, as it purely motivates me even more.

I’d rather live a shorter life doing what I love, than a long life spent not enjoying what I do…and I’m glad I’m doing it!

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I am in the process of working my way through the training grades.

Without doubt, it has to be one of the hardest professions for anybody starting out without a serious backer or an established foundation ... in racing terms that would be a ‘big’ owner or somebody ‘inheriting’ a stable from a family member or other trainer.

By comparison to those examples, I have done it a lot tougher and there is no question it can be frightening, but as you start getting a better quality of race horse in the stable and are able to look at them, and then forward to the next couple of years, you do get some of the encouragement you need.

And that love I have for the game always keeps me going.

I am quite obsessed with it actually. I could go to the stables and be there all day. I love it that much.

It helps when you’ve got a great farrier, a great vet and confidence in all of your staff. All of those things have a tremendous influence on getting the right result.

I also think it helps me being based on course at Eagle Farm. I’m there with the top trainers in Queensland, which makes me realise, consciously or sub-consciously, the bar is so much higher and therefore, I always have something to strive for.

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In the past, virtually every horse I bought was on spec. I then had to convince owners to take shares.

That is starting to change now. Some owners are coming to me and putting in requests and orders for me to try to buy certain horses.

Training horses is not just about training horses. It is about obtaining a horse, syndicating the horse, training the horse, achieving success with the horse, maintaining a good relationship and communication with the owners, reconciling accounts, managing staff and ultimately getting paid to do all of this.

It’s not an easy game on so many levels, but my stable has grown rapidly, so I must be doing something right!

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Perhaps you should can now appreciate how my people skills and business background gives me an edge in running a successful and happy stable.

Those are just two of a multitude of reasons why owners or potential owners feel comfortable placing horses with me.

In terms of equine care, I believe my stable is one of the best. I work very closely with my vet and farrier. My horses are trotted up twice, sometimes three times a week routinely to check for any issues. We’re proactive rather than reactive which is a great advantage in detecting any early signs of illness or injury.

I am always open to new ideas, as is every good trainer, particularly with the ever expanding research and development of equine exercise and physiology. I believe I’ve worked with enough people and have enough experience to have a strong foundation of knowledge.

What is it that defines the X-Factor of a horse?

Basically athleticism is an eye-catching factor but, really, the answer to the question remains multi-dimensional which is why I will like one horse and you will like another horse. It is forever a work in progress.

I am honest with owners in terms of the assessment of their horses. I’m pretty ruthless in that regard. If I think the horse is limited and unlikely to give the owners a financial return I will advise them accordingly.

Owners have the right to know what trainers are thinking. It is never easy to tell them something like that, but I am able to achieve this by keeping owners constantly up-to-date with reports and updates, so there are not any misunderstandings.

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At the moment my stable is growing.

I have been fortunate to have now attracted some interest from some well-known owners interstate with whom I hope to build an on-going and expanding relationship. Hopefully more will follow suit.

Ultimately what you need is for someone to believe in you. Everybody in life needs an opportunity and I am very grateful to those who have already shown me such strong support.

You have always got to have a goal though and I am constantly hard at work to make my stable bigger, better and more successful for my clients.

If anybody wants to discuss placing horses with me, don’t hesitate.

Please call 0406 536 324.

I look forward to that conversation.

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