Taylor Made Farm

Updated on Dec 30, 2024

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Founded 1976

Type Thoroughbred breeding and sales Founder Duncan Taylor & Mike Shannon Headquarters Nicholasville, Kentucky Key people Duncan Taylor: founder, President, CEOBen Taylor: Vice President of Taylor Made StallionsFrank Taylor: Vice President of Boarding OperationsPat Payne: Vice President of SalesMark Taylor: Vice President of Marketing and Public Sales Operations

Taylor Made Farm is a 1,600-acre Thoroughbred racehorse breeding farm in Jessamine County, Kentucky, and is a leading consignor of Thoroughbred horses. The farm is owned and operated by four brothers, Duncan, Ben, Frank and Mark Taylor with their long time family friend and business associate Pat Payne becoming a partner in 2008.

History

Taylor Made was founded in 1976 by then-19-year-old Duncan Taylor and his business partner Mike Shannon as a broodmare boarding farm, and initially was located on a parcel of leased land on Gainesway Farm. Gainesway Farm used Taylor Made as a place to board mares that traveled to Kentucky to be bred. The Taylor brothers, Duncan, Ben, Frank, and Mark grew up living and working on Gainesway Farm with their father, Joe Taylor, the farm's manager, and also learned about the horse business from their grandfather.

In 1978, the business broadened to include sales when they consigned horses at the Keeneland Sales. By 2012, Taylor Made was consigning approximately 10% of the Keeneland's September yearling sale−about 345 yearlings out of the entire sales catalog of 3,604.

As Taylor Made grew, the horses were kept on leased property and barns throughout Central Kentucky. They expanded into sales consignments and then built their own facility on a 120-acre piece of property owned by Joe Taylor on Union Mill Road in Nicholasville, Kentucky.

Operation

Taylor Made is divided into two separate companies: Taylor Made Sales Agency, and Taylor Made Stallions Inc. Taylor Made Sales Agency is in involved with public and private sales as well as a boarding facility. The brothers of the Taylor family have been the sole the owners of the corporation since 1986.

Taylor Made is headed by Duncan Taylor, the president and CEO of the family-owned farm. Ben Taylor is the vice president of the company's Taylor Made Stallions division. The farm now is 1,600 acres today.

Taylor Made Sales Agency

Taylor Made Sales Agency is a leading consignor of Thoroughbred horses.

For fourteenth time since 2001, Taylor Made was the leading consignor at the 2016 January Horse of All Ages Keeneland Sales auction with 92 horses sold for $4,359,500.

Boarding Operations

Taylor Made Farm has 22 barns with 429 stalls. The farm has three round pens, five exercise walkers and 107 paddocks. Frank Taylor is the Vice President of boarding operations.

Taylor Made Stallions

As of 2016 stallions owned by Taylor Made include:

Astrology: In 2012, Astrology retired to Taylor Made Farm to stud with a 3-3-3 record from 12 starts and earnings of $516,977.

California Chrome: Taylor Made Farm bought a 30% share of 2014 Kentucky Derby winner and American Horse of the Year, California Chrome, with the intent of racing him in 2016 then retiring him in 2017.

Graydar: In 2013, Graydar retired to Taylor Made Farm for stud as a Twin Creeks Racing/Taylor Made Stallions venture. Graydar was bred in Kentucky by William Farish.

Northern Afleet: Northern Afleet, a sire of Afleet, entered stud in 1999 at Double Diamond Farm in Ocala. He moved to Taylor Made Farm in 2004. Northern Afleet has sired champion race hose Afleet Alex. He has sired a Breeders' Cup winner and has a son that sired a Breeders' Cup winner.

Previous stallions stood by Taylor Made included:

Unbridled's Song (1993-2013), winner of the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, Florida Derby and Wood Memorial.

References

Taylor Made Farm Wikipedia

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