Orchid Bertelsen spent the last 20 years building a career that took her from a law firm in DC to the Gucci sales floor, through digital marketing at Nestle, and eventually into private equity, where she now helps beauty brands grow profitably.

A first-generation Taiwanese American who grew up without a safety net, Orchid learned early that the path forward meant working harder than everyone else and getting close to the money.

After 30 years away from horses, she recently returned to the saddle at a historic equestrian club 10 minutes from her home in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, and what started as a Christmas gift of six lessons has since taken over her entire personality.

FIVE KEY INSIGHTS:

• Finding your way back: Orchid rode from 10 to 14, competed on the B circuit in Illinois and Wisconsin, then stepped away for nearly 30 years. Her return started with a walk past the Grosse Pointe Equestrian Center with her kid in a stroller and one question: "what if?"
• Horses as a forcing function for presence: Managing an oversensitive 17.3-hand horse named Bo has a way of demanding you show up fully. For someone always attached to her phone, barn time is the one place she's not.
• Building content with a system: Through Orchid in the Saddle, she applies her marketing background to create content for returning riders. Batch film on barn days, script with ChatGPT, edit ruthlessly in CapCut to 30 seconds or less, and let the data tell you what to make next.
• The gap the equestrian industry is missing: There's a disconnect between who brands design for and who's actually buying. From boot calf widths to men's sizing to grooming bags, the middle market for quality products made for real people at real price points is wide open.
• Immigrant grit and the cost of an obsession: All three voices in this conversation are first-generation Americans, and the thread connecting growing up without a safety net, building careers close to revenue, and developing a full-blown horse obsession is very real and very relatable.

Orchid Bertelsen is proof that the horse world can pull you back in no matter how long you've been gone, and that returning to the barn at 43 with a half-lease, a TikTok account, and a marketing brain is its own kind of superpower. This conversation covers everything from building a content strategy on a barn budget to the very real gap in equestrian products for adult amateurs, and why the brands that figure that out first are going to win big. If you've ever thought about coming back to horses, or wondered whether your outside career could actually make you better in the saddle, this episode is for you.

Follow Orchid: @orchidinthesaddle on TikTok and Instagram

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Susan Friedland is a former middle school English teacher turned equestrian author based outside Chicago, Illinois. She traded the classroom for the page and has since written four books, including her latest, Marguerite, Misty, and Me, a deep dive into the life of beloved children's author Marguerite Henry.

A lifelong horse-obsessed kid who grew up borrowing horses in Wayne, Illinois, Susan eventually found her way to fox hunting, polo lessons, and the wild pony swim at Chincoteague Island, all while building a writing career that blends her love of horses, history, and storytelling.

What we talked about:

• The real story behind Misty of Chincoteague: wild pony swims, saltwater cowboys, and the tiny Virginia island that inspired one of the most beloved horse books of all time
• How Marguerite Henry went from a city woman with no horse experience to the author of millions of copies across multiple languages, including a Newbery Medal winner
• What it actually takes to write a book about a beloved figure and why Susan says it's "not for the faint of heart"
• The hero's journey hiding inside every great horse story, and why that's probably why these books still hit the way they do
• Why traditional publishers keep passing on horse books, and why Susan (and the numbers) think they're wrong

Susan's story is proof that the path to your dream career doesn't have to be a straight line. It can look like a fox hunting trail through the California hills, a trip to a Virginia island, and an attic full of letters written to a pony. If you've ever felt the pull of a horse book as a kid, this one will take you right back.

Follow Susan on Instagram: @saddleseekshorses

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This episode features Danielle Henson, Sport Communications Manager at the U.S. Equestrian Federation, equestrian, Louisville native, and the person behind one of the most genuinely useful newsletters in the horse industry: CLICK HERE

She talks about what it actually takes to build a career in the horse world when you didn't grow up with industry connections, how social media in equestrian sport has transformed over the last decade, and why the best content always comes back to one thing — the horse.

Key topics we discussed:

1. Growing up 10 minutes from Churchill Downs and finding horses through 4-H and a little Arabian barn called Stonehurst Riding Club
2. The LinkedIn newsletter she started to help people find jobs in the horse world — and how it helped someone land a role at USEF
3. How social media has evolved from hashtags and Snapchat global stories to full video production departments
4. Why horse-forward, emotional content outperforms everything else
5. Her advice for breaking into the equestrian industry without a head start

Social Media Links:

• LinkedIn: Danielle Henson (search + follow her newsletter while you're there)

Horse People Podcast:

• Instagram: @horsepeoplepodcast

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