Peter Broderick, Managing Director of Happy Horse Products in Westby, provided the answer to the equine community's prayers when he invented the hay steamer - a compact, easy to use system that steams hay before feeding.

The steam removes dust and fungal spores which can irritate a horse's airways, while retaining nutrients in the hay - and removes the need to soak the hay for hours and then carry it around in heavy nets.

The steamer, which won the British Equestrian Trade Association Innovation Award 2007, has proved so popular that Happy Horse has been inundated with inquiries from abroad as well as the home market.

UKTI International Trade Adviser Sandra Thornber is a horse owner and immediately recognised the product's potential. She enrolled Happy Horse on Passport to Export, UKTI's flagship programme for new and inexperienced exporters, which offers free capability assessments, support in visiting potential markets, mentoring from a local export professional, free action plans, customised and subsidised training and ongoing support.

The programme helped Peter to identify that the best markets to target were Europe and the Middle East, and Peter was able to use funding from UKTI to attend a trade mission to Dubai and have his brochures translated for the Dubai International Horse Fair. He is now planning to internationalise the Happy Horse website, and is attending another trade show, Equitana, in Germany.

Peter has also attended shows in the UK and overseas including Badminton, the Horse of the Year Show, Spoga Horse in Cologne - for which he received funding under UKTI's Tradeshow Access Programme - and the Al Fares International Equine Trade Fair in Dubai. As a result, Happy Horse now employ six different distributors in Europe and one in the Middle East.

Customers include Matt Ryan, Triple Olympic Gold Medallist, and Sheik Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the current ruler of Dubai who owns over 200 racehorses.

Although the company was only set up last year to market and distribute the hay steamer - originally an off the shelf product for parent company Arthur Carter Limited - Happy Horse has already achieved a turnover of £150,000, half of which is accounted for by export sales.

Peter says, "I am delighted with the success of the product so far, and would not hesitate to recommend the services of UK Trade & Investment to other companies. My International Trade Adviser Sandra Thornber is always on hand to offer advice and guidance, and her support has been invaluable.

"I was very sceptical when I enrolled on the Passport to Export Programme as I'm not keen on workshops, but I found it to be the most valuable course I have ever attended.

"The two days' training were very business focused and specific to what I was trying to achieve. UKTI helped me to put together a strategy and identify the company's weak spots and strengths, and the biggest help was in directing me toward the best markets for the product. As a result Happy Horse is now selling steamers in Germany, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Finland, Denmark and Norway as well as Dubai, and we are confident of continued expansion."

Sandra Thornber, International Trade Adviser for UKTI North West, says,
"As a former horse owner myself I was really excited when Peter explained the concept of the hay steamer to me. Having endured many mornings dragging freezing cold, wet sacks of hay around a stable yard, I immediately realised the potential of the product, and it has been a pleasure to be able to work with Happy Horse to promote the hay steamer overseas.

"Although quite a new company, Happy Horse are already doing very well, and a lot of this success is down to international trade. For many companies, trading in international markets can be key to business success and as Happy Horse have proved, you don't have to wait until you have reached saturation point in the home market before considering the potential of exporting.

"Research has shown exporters have higher levels of productivity, innovation and investment than non-exporters, and UKTI have a great deal of help available to companies to put them on the road to overseas success. We would encourage other businesses thinking of expanding internationally to contact us and see how we can help."