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12 CapitalPress.com August 24, 2018 Industry benefits from stronger economy, higher disposable incomes TACK from Page 1 Bean, Vincent and other western saddle-and-tack pro- viders occupy a unique niche in the retail world, selling hand-made saddles and tack to horse owners in the face of growing online competition. At the same time, they are coping with a shrinking num- ber of recreational and work- ing horses and the lingering impact of the multi-year recession that reverberated through the economy. “We get some walk-in trade, but not a lot,” said Greg Gomersall, 55, another sad- dle-maker in the New Plym- outh area. “I’m sort of a her- mit, so maybe that’s a good thing.” Separately, he and Bean joke about their lack of tech- nology savvy. Yet Bean is launching a new website. And Greg Gomersall Saddlery now derives about 15 percent of its revenue from customers who first find the business on Facebook, the owner said. ‘Touch’ industries In a retail world gobbled up by online websites such as Amazon, saddle, individually owned tack and Western soft goods and accessories remain across the region because they are largely “touch” industries. “Consumers still like to have the opportunity to touch and feel products, and have a relationship with retailers that is outside the digital world,” said National Retail Federa- tion spokeswoman Ana Sera- fin Smith. Many e-commerce brands are making plans to open stores — Amazon has stores in 21 states. At the same time, many store-fo- cused retailers are investing in their online presence “to make sure they are engaging with consumers during this technology revolution.” Bean spreads out in his home-based workshop for big projects and to custom-make saddles — which can take more than 1,000 hours to build and can cost $20,000 to $45,000, he said. He also does many smaller repairs to saddles and tack in his main retail store, mainly to stay in front of customers as much as possible. Including tack, Western clothing, jewelry and accessories, RC Bean Sad- dlery clients “range from kids all the way to the deep-pock- eted,” he said. The business also sells used saddles and tack in an adjacent building. “It’s never been harder to be in the saddle-and-tack re- tail business,” Bean said. “In the saddle world it has gotten tougher because there is so much information on the in- ternet. And I would say proba- bly half is false or misleading, so people will come in here after reading it. Brad Carlson/Capital Press Rick and Kristie Bean in the larger of their two shops at RC Bean Saddlery near Star, Idaho. Courtesy of Hamley & Co. Penny French and Todd Thorne at Hamley & Co., Pendleton, Ore. Courtesy of Greg and Cyndi Gomersall Saddles must be tough, comfortable, long-lasting — and attractive. “People do choose a sad- dle on the internet by price and buy it,” he said. “Some- times it works and sometimes it doesn’t.” The half-dozen sales rep- resentatives calling on Bean’s business report they have fewer customers, as more mom-and-pop saddle shops close. The industry benefits from a stronger economy and high- er disposable incomes. But the impacts of the recession linger in the form of a reduced horse population. “A lot have sold their horses,” Vincent said. “Hay prices were high and a lot of people had lost their jobs.” The U.S. population of pri- vately owned horses stands at 7.2 million, down about 2 million, or 27 percent, from a decade ago, said Cliff Wil- liamson, American Horse Council director of health and regulatory affairs. However, annual spending on horses has increased over that period by $20 billion to $122 billion, reflecting higher costs and an improving econ- omy. Vincent said people who Brad Carlson/Capital Press Rick Bean of RC Bean Saddlery at a work bench setting a rivet on a halter. sold horses during the reces- sion have been slow to get back into horse ownership, and many horse-related busi- nesses haven’t been replaced. “We are seeing a little bit of recovery,” he said. “A lot of people are going back to work in the oil fields. That has helped.” Customer changes Bean said his customer mix has changed. Mountain Farm Bureau continues fight to stop WOTUS implementation By CAROL RYAN DUMAS Capital Press The American Farm Bureau Fed- eration took quick action following a federal judge’s ruling in South Car- olina that would make the contro- versial 2015 Waters of the U.S. rule immediately applicable in 26 states under the Clean Water Act. Late last week, U.S. District Judge David Norton ruled the Trump administration failed to comply with rulemaking requirements in sus- pending the rule and reinstated the WOTUS rule nationwide. Federal courts in North Dakota and Geor- gia, however, have already granted injunctions blocking the rule in 24 states. AFBF and a coalition of business organizations then notified the U.S. District Court in South Carolina they will appeal the court’s ruling. They also notified a U.S. Dis- trict Court in Texas — where AFBF filed its original legal challenge to WOTUS — of the South Carolina ruling, urging the court to issue a na- tionwide injunction against the rule. In November 2017, the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers delayed implementation of WOTUS to pro- vide “continuity and regulatory cer- tainty for regulated entities, states and tribes, agency staff and the pub- lic while the agencies continue to work to consider possible revisions,” AFBF and the coalition stated in their notice to the Texas court. In August 2015, a North Dakota district court blocked implementa- tion of WOTUS in 13 states. In June 2018, a Georgia district court blocked its implementation in 11 states, con- cluding plaintiffs “overwhelmingly” demonstrated the likelihood of suc- cess on the merits of their challenge. That court also stated that if the rule ever went into effect, it would trig- ger “immediate irreparable harm,” AFBF and the coalition pointed out. In October 2015, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a nationwide stay but dismissed the case and lifted the stay following the January 2018 U.S. Supreme Court ruling stating the Court of Appeals did not have jurisdiction to hear chal- lenges to the rule. The South Carolina court ruling now puts WOTUS into effect for the first time in nearly three years, but only in the 26 states where no pre- liminary injunction is pending. “Thus a legally suspect regulation of immense practical importance has come into effect in a patchwork of 26 states,” the notice to the Texas court stated. AFBF and others have argued WOTUS greatly expands federal regulatory authority in violation of congressional intent. “The ability of plaintiffs’ mem- bers to plan their projects and orga- nize their affairs is highly sensitive to the scope of the agencies’ regulatory jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. Allowing WOTUS to come into effect in 26 states will prove enor- mously disruptive to their operations and indeed to the entire national economy,” AFBF and the coalition said in the court notice. The WOTUS rule’s now piece- meal application compounds these far-reaching and deleterious effects. That is a particularly troubling pros- pect given that plaintiffs’ members manage construction, extraction and farming across multiple states, cre- ating conflicting permitting obliga- tions, they said. “A crazy-quilt regulatory envi- ronment is simply untenable,” they said. A nationwide preliminary in- junction should be granted as expe- ditiously as possible, they told the court. The states that are impacted by the ruling are: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Mas- sachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia and Washington. outfitters provided about one- third of his revenue in the 1980s and 1990s. Now, they have either switched to off- road vehicles or continued to use their original saddles and tack as fewer participants en- tered the outfitting industry. Horse trainers remain a major source of business for Bean, as have hobbyists. Gomersall said the half-dozen trade shows he at- tends each year don’t generate as much revenue as they used to, probably because people have more access to informa- tion online. The bulk of his business remains working cowhands who order custom handmade gear. “And I do notice people are not content to wait as much as they did 10 to 15 years ago,” Gomersall said. As for product mix, Ham- ley Western Store in Pendle- ton, Ore., optimizes its inven- tory by paying attention to customers and niche oppor- tunities. Hamley management team members Todd Thorne and Penny French said the 10,000-square-foot store is doing well but is continu- ously challenged by big on- line retailers as well as larger brick-and-mortar competitors with strong buying power. Carrying unique bronz- es and “boutique” offerings, saddles and tack made by lo- cal crafters, and clothing and accessories that for the most part don’t compete head-to- head with larger players on price help the store succeed as a local-niche player that also appeals to visitors, they said. Vincent has done some- thing similar at Flying V Saddlery, recently working with an employee to design custom leather purses, to broaden the customer base in addition to adding a price point. Thorne, a former bond trader, said internet retail- ing in the aggregate reduces profit spreads but also pro- vides a high degree of up-to- the minute price transparen- cy. This challenges smaller retailers such as Hamley — which builds saddles, tack and other handcrafted leath- er items in a dedicated shop and retails Western and ranch goods in a landmark store renovated in the mid-2000s — but also helps them make better decisions. “We also have had to rec- ognize we do have to be ac- tive with respect to internet marketing and social media as well,” Thorne said. French said refurbishing and redecorating the store amounted to a “total rein- vention” that created a pleas- ing sensory experience that draws customers. For exam- ple, the store has “vintage custom saddles created by the Hamley saddle-makers of the past. We are lucky to have them back in the collec- tion,” she said. In Star, Idaho, Bean is re- flecting on the future. “I used to have store em- ployees so I could stay home and build saddles,” he said. “Now Kristie and I are in the store most often, and do have part-time help.” 2015 rule would give broad regulatory control over waters WOTUS from Page 1 implementation in 24 states. The rule now applies in 26 states, including Washington, Oregon and California. The court’s decision is the result of a motion for summary judgment brought by 10 conservation groups represented by the Southern Envi- ronmental Law Center. “We are thrilled the court re- jected this administration’s blatant attempts to undermine safeguards that are critical to our nation’s wel- fare without being accountable to the American people,” Geoff Gisler, senior attorney with the law center, said in a statement. Agricultural groups, however, see things differently. The American Farm Bureau Fed- eration calls the ruling “misguided” and maintains the WOTUS rule is overbroad, vague and illegal. “Today’s court ruling creates enormous regulatory uncertainty and risk for farmers, ranchers and others in the 26 states that are not already protected from the unlawful 2015 rule by previous court deci- sions,” Zippy Duvall, AFBF presi- dent, said in a statement on Thurs- day. The court was wrong to invali- date the rule that had simply delayed the effective date of the WOTUS rule while the administration works to develop a new regulation to pro- vide both clean water and clear rules, he said While that work continues, AFBF is urging the administration to take action in court to limit the scope of the district court’s decision to South Carolina. National Cattlemen’s Beef Asso- ciation said the court’s ruling under- scores the urgent need to finalize the repeal of the 2015 WOTUS rule. “The South Carolina court has effectively brought WOTUS back from the dead in 26 states, creating a zombie version of the 2015 rule that threatens the rights of farmers and ranchers across the country,” Scott Yager, NCBA chief environmental counsel, said in a statement to the press. Oregon Farm Bureau also issued a statement, saying EPA could now force farmers and ranchers to apply for a costly permit to do even the most basic work, such as plowing, planting and applying pesticides and fertilizers on dry fields. They could also be hit with enor- mous fines and frivolous lawsuits, Mary Anne Cooper, OFB public policy counsel, said. “The 2015 WOTUS rule goes far beyond congressional intent and the lawful bounds of the Clean Water Act as articulated by previous Su- preme Court decisions,” she said. OFB is urging the Trump admin- istration to permanently repeal the rule as quickly as possible.