AS Owner Development Manager with HRI, it is my job to promote the prospect of having a horse in training in this country. I am essentially selling a dream; an ideal.

I was born into racing, my father is well known trainer Edward O’Grady. My grandfather was Willie O’Grady and my grandmother was a sister of the legendary PP Hogan.

My mother also worked in the Pedigree Department of Goffs, so industry involvement literally comes from every side of the family!

I was sitting on a pony before I could walk and was attending race meetings from a young age. I was a bit young to really remember Dad’s big-hitting horses of the 1970s but I remember being in the sitting room with Granny, Timmy Finn and the lads in the yard shouting at a very fuzzy black and white TV.

Throughout my teens I did a lot of hunting, pony club and working hunter, I rode out a little at home but getting run away with on the gallops wasn’t for me. I was 17 when I paid my first visit to Cheltenham. Danoli was the Irish banker that year and duly delivered, while Dad had two winners for JP McManus: Time For A Run and Mucklemeg.

ROUNDED EDUCATION

I went on to UCD to study French and Politics, my parents were adamant that I have a rounded education. I tried many different things during those years, including working for Club Med, a theme park and a hunting yard in Belgium.

I also spent a year studying in France. I also worked at Leopardstown during college and the Christmas Festivals, doing everything from front desk duties to making tea and collecting laundry.

Given my love of sport in general, I wanted to work in the marketing and sponsorship side of the business once I completed by degree. Before settling into the workforce, I took 18 months off to travel and work my way around the world. I briefly worked for the Victorian Racing Club as well as various customer service jobs.

I visited the Breeders’ Cup, the Melbourne Cup, New Zealand Bloodstock sales and racing went to some quality racing at Randwick.

I came home for a short time before moving to London, where I spent six years working in Sports PR and Sponsorship.

Route One looked after major stars including the boxer Lennox Lewis and promoted the Birmingham and London Motor Bike and Scooter Shows.

I then worked for sports agency SBI, who owned the London Triathlon – it went from a small event to being the biggest triathlon in the world in a short few years.

My work also involved looking after Martell’s sponsorship of the Grand National at Aintree.

I looked after the Daily Telegraph’s racing sponsorship, PR for Sandown Park and Attheraces when it initially launched. My final job in London was with Betfair, managing their sponsorship portfolio which included the Ashes and over 150 race sponsorships.

RETURING HOME

Having spent a further 12 months with Betfair after returning to Ireland, I then went freelance for 10 years. During those years I set up the ITBA Expo, helped grow the Tattersalls Horse Trials in number from 4,000 to 30,000 visitors.

I organised the Equus Live indoor event at Punchestown, worked for Fairyhouse racecourse developing their marketing and sponsorship and have also worked for GAA clients. In 2012, my husband Robert and I set up Platinum Bloodstock. We breed, board mares and consign at the sales.

Next month, I will celebrate my second full year as Owner Development Manager with HRI.

The job was a new role and it really appealed to me, as I believe it is an area I can develop further. Robert and I have been owners on and off over the years in Ireland and the UK so I have first- hand experience of ownership.

In the last two years the ownership team have created an ownership brand and presence and created a number of campaigns.

The objective is to make ownership appealing as a pastime both domestically and internationally. Experience It allowed prospective owners trial ownership and run a horse in their syndicate name for a day.

In 2018, we engaged ambassadors Sean O’Brien and Ed Chamberlin to promote ownership and our This Is Our Team campaign.

We recently launched a Colours Campaign which promotes the owner and their colours as again being the centre of the team.

It is all about engaging with the public and getting them to look at ownership instead maybe a golf or rugby membership.

We have run a number of events in Ireland and London bringing together people with an interest in racing encouraging them to get involved.

Although we work in an industry and it is our livelihood we are selling a product, a pastime.

Thankfully, recent industry figures show an increase in ownership. New owners were up 16% in 2018, with 33% of that latter figure being credited to syndicates. It is up to each and every one of us within the industry to build on that success and promote the sport we love.

Amber Byrne was in conversation with John O’Riordan