Club Foyer>The Riding Mac>Riding for Pleasure>
Dear Lorraine,
I have been reading your columns for some time now and recently have been
struck by two things:-
a. all the most realistic letters, stories, photographs etc. relate to riding
mackintoshes rather than any other sort of rubberised rainwear.
b. the whole thing has in the last twelve months been getting a very run down
look and feel to it.
This is sad as it did have a lot to offer and I feel still ought to have. Can l suggest an more positive approach on your/your firm's part.?
Briefly taking the two points I have made my comments would be:-
a. this is natural for the simple reason that people who used to wear riding
macs were very ordinary every day folk who had to have no way-out fetish
feelings in order to buy one and wear it, not only in the country but also
in towns, on trains etc. On the other hand people who bought very smelly
and obviously fetishist single texture macs were, in the main, those who
had an erotic feeling for rubber.
That does not mean that nobody who owned or wore a riding mac did not have such a feeling as well, but their whole approach to those macs was natural and normal. (See below in italics.)
As far as you website is concerned, you are clearly receiving less input and are having to bulk things out by using modern technology to create photographs to try to titillate people. This is only partly successful and a new approach is essential.
Let me be very critical. Take for a start your opening page on riding macs. Instead of a series of great photos of a lovely girl in various poses showing off these wonderful macs to ' their best advantage, you have an old b&w photo of three not very attractive girls wearing their macs in a very take it or leave it style.
If you were really serious about wanting to sell trade riding mackintoshes in these days you would have found a model and got some great shots at very very little cost.
If you want stories or old photos why do you not write to the well known riders from the past (say 1960-1980 because they will mostly be still alive) asking if they have got any photos they would lend you, or memories that they could write about (incognito if necessary). It would be relatively easy with the internet to find the names and addresses of the top show jumpers and event riders from those days.
If you do not make a real attempt to brighten things up surely all your potential readers and, more importantly, customers will disappear.
You could do something about it still but need to do it with far more determination than you are showing at the moment. Hope you will accept my well meant advice and criticism!
Yours
Patrick.
PS
My own experiences may interest you: Why she was so cheerful
Dear PatrickI'm so sorry you are disappointed with the riding mac pages over the past twelve months.
Everyone with a special focus can get really frustrated from time to time and everyone will try and understand your hitting out. I'm sure Imogen and the other recent contributors will forgive you!
And so let's hope will those many friends whose generous letters etc elsewhere on the site strike you as 'unrealistic'!
You must have thought of creating your own site along the lines you mention. That would be terrific! There would be lots of interest I'm sure.
You say at the end that you hope l accept your 'advice and criticism'.
About your criticism, I'm not sure what I need to do to 'accept' it. Is this a case where I get to wear two macs with the thigh straps buckled really tight for a long gallop in the stair-rodding rain? Yes, I accept!
Advice? Lots of good ideas, I'm sure, if only there were someone really desperately keen who could give them priority...
Incidentally, you seem to have the idea that I put up the pages in order to sell riding macs! An easy mistake to make I know but it's completely wrong! I do it for fun! I like them, and others like them, and we enjoy sharing stories and pics etc about them. (I know the business gets to make them as well, but that's because we are asked to!) Coca Cola we are not.
Thanks very much for the biographical note, which I have put up here. (I've had to edit it a bit, sorry - School Rules.)
Best wishes
Lorraine
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