We recently connected with Jen Tankel and have shared our conversation below.

Jen, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Coming up with the idea is so exciting, but then comes the hard part – executing. Too often the media ignores the execution part and goes from idea to success, skipping over the nitty, gritty details of executing in the early days. We think that’s a disservice both to the entrepreneurs who built something amazing as well as the public who isn’t getting a realistic picture of what it takes to succeed. So, we’d really appreciate if you could open up about your execution story – how did you go from idea to execution?

I first had the idea for Pegasus in March 2020. Setting the scene: The COVID pandemic had just started, and Sam, my husband (then-boyfriend) and I left Washington, DC and took refuge in an AirBnB in Farmville, Virginia.

It was the perfect place to socially distance, and we were surrounded by horse farms. As a lifelong equestrian, I would’ve loved to have been able to ride – a socially distanced activity – but there was nowhere to find the owners of the farms to see if that was an option. They weren’t online and there was no way to connect with them.

I was still employed at a global parking technology company and historically always on a plane in the ongoing conference circuit. This new working reality gave me more time on my hands so I thought – why not build the tool that I wish existed right now: an online community to be able to search for and find all things equestrian, such as riding stables in Farmville, Virginia.

Sam had just exited his previous company, WithYouWithMe, and so I recruited him to the mission and he became my co-founder. He and I spent the next year building what we call Pegasus Version 1 and launched it to the public on New Year’s Day of 2021.

It was a blend of AirBnB and Facebook for the equestrian community – there was a comprehensive news section, the ability to contribute your own blog, a job board, and a comprehensive directory of equestrian businesses to connect with.

The immediate feedback was positive and we had a recurring request to add the ability to see equestrian events on the platform as well. The equestrian industry is incredibly fragmented and operates via word of mouth, and so it is common for riders to be unaware of a show or clinic taking place that they otherwise would’ve loved to attend.

We then added the ability to post events, which the riders liked – but then we learned from event organizers that it isn’t so much the finding the events that’s the worst part – it’s the actual management of the event.

Horse show organizers have dealt with dated technology or succumbed to pen and paper to run their events, and there was an increasing desperation for a modern solution.

That was a key moment in our journey – we pivoted the company to become an event management system, the first modern platform and app to manage not only the searching for and finding events – but for handling the entries, scheduling, scoring, reporting, and more.

Sam, our golden retriever Chloe, and I then spent the next 2 years on the road living out of AirBnBs and doing market research to build the perfect event management system. We travelled to different equestrian meccas, met with equestrian governing bodies, all kinds of rider – no matter their level or discipline – and of course event organizers themselves. We were determined to build the system that served every stakeholder’s needs.

We raised funds from angel investors which enabled us to hire our engineering team. After a beta period, we officially launched the platform in the summer of 2024.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I was born into the equestrian industry – my mom is also a lifelong equestrian and was a competitive Hunter Jumper rider when I was growing up- so I was that kid who learned how to ride before I learned how to walk.

My first pony was a rescued Arabian that my parents bought for $1 – he had never been off the property where he came from, so he was green and timid. By no means a flashy expensive horse – he was a big project for an 8 year old. I joined Pony Club and discovered eventing and transformed what was a backyard pony into this awesome little sport pony, traveling up and down the east coast and competing at horse shows.

When I was 14, he sadly passed away and I was looking for a new horse. A friend of my mom’s had an advanced level event horse – a 14 year old thoroughbred mare – and she herself was burnt out on riding. So this incredible horse was just sitting bored in a pasture, and the friend offered to gift her to us. She loved the idea of her beloved horse being in a Pony Club home with a family who would love her forever, versus selling her to someone where she could be a string of competition horses. Her name was “Impulsive” and she was the most incredible horse I have ever ridden to this day. Such luck to have been gifted a horse who could have easily been sold for 6 figures. She taught me everything, and we competed up to prelim.

Fast forward to college, and engineering school took priority over my competition schedule. When I graduated, I went on to work at an engineering firm, then discovered startups, my love for entrepreneurship, and was eventually recruited to a parking technology company as a sales executive.

It’s so cool to be able to combine all passions into one. I’m incredibly detail-oriented, obsessive about a great customer experience, and am a perpetual “ideas person” – I’m always thinking of new ways we can innovate in the industry – from one-of-a-kind features, marketing strategies, partnerships, branding. I’m proud of the fact that we’ve been able to apply first thinking principles to a historically outdated industry, where everything looks and feels the same, and where customers have had to deal with the status quo.

For example – our name is different than the other equestrian brands. Instead of an “equi” or a “horse” something, we are Pegasus. Our color is a delightful poppy pink, not just another blue colored horse brand. We are constantly evolving and improving our technology to suit the needs of our customers. We get two big compliments, which are:

1. Our dedication to world class customer support. The legacy systems, our competition, has gotten away with treating customers poorly for decades. By comparison, our customers can jump on a call with us at any time, they can use our AI chat with real-time support, they get new features they’ve asked for versus having to simply deal with lack of innovation, etc. It is incredibly important to us that our customers – the organizers – and their customers – the riders – always feel supported and know we’re here to help with anything they need.

2. Our continuous innovation and pricing structure. The other systems have outdated, clunky pricing tiers where they nickel and dime users to unlock different tools. They also don’t build features that organizers repeatedly say they need. We are intentionally the exact opposite, and we’ve been able to get traction because of it. We’re constantly adding features to our cloud-based platform that benefits everyone, not just some “gold level membership.” The pricing structure is clean and simple – it’s a set transaction fee and it costs nothing to get started. As we add to the platform, everyone gets that value.

All of this to say, we’re applying a Silicon Valley technology company approach to an underserved market, which is the equestrian industry. I’m incredibly proud to bring world class technology, innovation, and customer service to the community I love the most.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

When we first started Pegasus, we were a small, scrappy team with big dreams and no shortage of challenges. We wanted to introduce horse show organizers to the software we were building, but there was one big problem: the platform wasn’t live yet. We weren’t funded, and our marketing budget was nearly nonexistent. With dozens of other vendors vying for attention at horse shows, how could we possibly stand out?

That’s when a bold idea hit me—my family’s secret fudge recipe. This wasn’t just any fudge; it was the kind that could make skeptics swoon and turn casual samplers into die-hard fans. We decided to take a risk and bet everything on this sweet little strategy.

Picture this: the night before every horse show, we’d set up shop in the tiny kitchen of our Airbnb, turning it into a makeshift fudge factory. We rolled up our sleeves, poured our hearts into making thousands of servings, cut each piece, and wrapped them in Pegasus pink-branded bags. To seal the deal, we added a card directing people to sign up for early access to our platform.

At the show, we hoisted a giant “FREE FUDGE!” sign over our booth, knowing we needed to grab attention in sprawling 100+ acre venues. We held our breath, unsure if anyone would even stop by. But as people began to flock to our booth, curious and excited, the energy shifted. Every interaction—whether someone came for the fudge or to hear about our vision—was a small win in what had felt like an uphill battle.

The result? A sweet success. Not only did we draw crowds, but we also built excitement around Pegasus, turning curiosity into genuine enthusiasm for what we were creating. In those moments, I felt a mix of pride, relief, and the exhilarating realization that creativity and grit could turn the odds in our favor. What started as a gamble became a defining story—a reminder that with a little ingenuity and a lot of heart, we could inspire people to believe in our vision.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

We built a decent sized audience before we even launched our technology.

Our event management system is incredibly robust – it’s a complex system with a ton of code. It took a long time to build it. Some of our competitors keep to handling just entries because that’s way easier than the full management side of things. We handle not only entries and management, but we also serve different disciplines around the world.

So that said- while we were building, I wanted people to know about it. We were having a ton of conversations with interesting equestrian thought leaders all over the world – so we decided to start a podcast and share our learnings.

The podcast was also a great excuse to reach out to anyone working on cool and innovative things in the equestrian industry and get them to share their story. The outcome was that we were able to talk about a topic that few were – the actual industry itself, the problems, and the opportunities – and I think that gave us credibility to what we were building.

In addition to that, as I said before, I’m a creative person and love coming up with new ideas for how to get the word out. In addition to making fudge for horse show merch giveaways, we’ve also done carrot campaigns – the same concept as the fudge but cards attached to carrots which the horses love – and dog hydration stations (Pegasus pink dog bowls placed all around a horse show). We’ve been able to get a lot of buzz and drive growth because of the creative things we do at shows.

Lastly, partnerships and social media skits themselves have helped a lot with our growth, and I would recommend partnering with those who share your vision. Don’t do a collab for the sake of a collab – it dilutes your brand and your values. Make sure who you work with is aligned with your mission.

For example, we’ve partnered with Zoetis, the global leader of equestrian health, Gabriela Reutter, professional show jumper and social media influencer, and have done a few other collabs with other brands who share our vision for the future of equestrian sports. They all are reputable companies with decent sized audiences themselves.

Whether it’s coming up with entertaining equestrian skits or providing a lot of value in the content we put out – we’ve been able to grow our following because we don’t make it all about us – we really think of what our audience wants to see.

We’ve had a lot of copycats and people trying to steal our ideas – but at the end of the day, if you’re staying true to your voice, brand, and audience – you’ll always be a step ahead of them. You’ll always be known as the original, and you’ll inevitably grow your following for being true to your unique story.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thepegasus.app
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepegasusapp/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepegasusapplication
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jentankel/
• Other: The Pegasus Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2y5GPhfo8FNdaT0gnVKJK3?si=696299b520ae4378