w w w. m a g i c m i l l i o n s . co m . a u •
Sandblom from the frustration of buying inexpensive tried racehorses to becoming an investor who could see and experience the bigger picture (although Sandblom’s wife Wendy gets credit for making the introduction having met Bart’s wife Valmae whilst the couples were holidaying at Lizard Island). Sandblom speaks at length – and with great fondness – about more than a decade spent attending the races with Bart. “I spent my first ten years just learning bits about the industry and not really seeing it as a business,” Sandblom says. “It was a tough business and an expensive business and eventually you work out that you really have to work with people whose every waking moment is ‘how do we make this work as a business’.”
“If you are going to purchase
a Golden Slipper winner out of an auction ring it is most likely to be Magic Millions.
”
Sandblom has, and continues to be, extremely successful in his choice of commercial endeavour – publishing – but he is well aware that great businessmen do not always translate to great thoroughbred investors. “A number of studies have shown that you need to dedicate yourself to something for 10 years before you get any good at it. That’s no different with horses,” Sandblom says. “The reality is most people come from a business background expecting instant success and occasionally you can get lucky, but actually that doesn’t happen too often. I have my other businesses to run so whilst I spend a fair bit of time on my horse business I don’t spend as much time as other people who have grown up with it, who are smart and dedicated, who devote themselves to it full time and who really understand the horse business as a business as you really need to know what’s going on.” The IPO of the educational publishing company that he co-founded - 3P Learning - a few years ago allowed Sandblom the financial leeway to change gears on his involvement in the thoroughbred industry; his contact with then Coolmore based Henry Field saw Sandblom as well as Tom Ryan and Gavin Murphy from SF Bloodstock in the US provide the necessary backing for Field to pursue his dream of going out on his own. First was the lease of the Scone based property known as Wakefield then shortly thereafter steps were made to acquire Brooklyn Lodge at Segenhoe to give Newgate Farm its permanent base. From trading mares and pinhooking weanlings and yearlings the team had taken the next step – commercial stallions. “To go to your first $10m stallion – Foxwedge– required quite a few backers for Henry – and we were willing to do that,” Sandblom says. “You see a lot of people come in, hose money everywhere and do things in a totally uneconomic way. This is Henry’s business so we know he is
~ 40 ~
going to focus on the economics of it and where the revenue is going to come from. Even though Newgate is considered up and coming and early stage successful it is still very much in its investment phase. There is a lot of capital being put in but we don’t do it for show. Everything has a function within the business from the roads to the fences to the new guest accommodation and new office building to the stallion roster to a valuable broodmare population and we have some exceptional partners on board with us. Realistically it is a 10 year programme.” Sandblom signed the cheque for a number of the high priced Teeley Asset dispersal mares who were knocked down to Newgate Farm at the Magic Millions sale in 2014. “I bought a whole chunk of that family that day,” he says. “You wonder at the time if you are paying too much but people showed how much they value the family when we sold the Fastnet Rock x Ten Carat Rock filly for $1m at this year’s Magic Millions January Yearling Sale.” In addition to his Newgate project, Sandblom is also involved with Henry and others in a number of colt syndicates – recent partners in which include China Horse Club and Aquis Farms. The aim: to purchase up to 30 colts a year to secure future stallions. Capitalist was a product of the first syndicate.
2 0 1 7
Y EARLING
SALE
“I speak to Henry every day regarding Newgate but it’s also fun to have a place where I can do whatever. I’ve got a very beautiful farm down near Kiama and I love it as a place but I always wanted something in the Hunter of my own,” says Sandblom. “There are certain criteria when we buy mares for Newgate and what stallions we mate them with but I have other projects I want to do as well on a much smaller scale. “Kingstar is just over 200 acres. Stallion making is economically a tough game particularly in the Hunter which is the most competitive in Australia – even in the world as we get all those imports as well. I’m sending 30 of my own mares to Bull Point and Adam [Cook] is doing a great job setting it up and we’ve only been involved there 9 months. We’ve put in stallion barns, fencing, irrigation etc. It gives me a new project and I like new projects. It’s why I have so many businesses that I am involved in.” As the year marches to a close as does a hectic season at both Newgate and Kingstar eyes turn to the first yearling sale of 2017. “Basically we are there to buy colts these days and we sell selectively,” says Sandblom. “Buying
Sandblom sold racing papers outside Harold Park as a youngster, dabbled successfully in a bit of bookmaking whilst at school and has an economics degree; he understands figures. He admits “If you look at our results the good colts have been priced between $150,000 and $350,000. Capitalist was $165,000. Once you start spending $600,000, $700,000, $800,000 in this game the odds are stacked way against you. At the end of the day there’s really not that much difference between a $250,000 horse and a $1m horse. People basically talk themselves into the difference and results prove that.” Sandblom’s restlessness for his next Everest is evident in both his commercial and thoroughbred investments to date and the number of balls he keeps in the air at any given time. In 2016 he established a farm at Denman across the road from Amarina. He owns another farm on the South Coast (where he has harness horses – another of his passions – and a few thoroughbreds) but Kingstar Farm had the location and layout to stand a roster of stallion that on type, pedigree and performance fill a market niche as well as allow Sandblom to agist a larger group of his own mares. Kingstar’s roster includes the Group winner and Gr 1 placed son of Fastnet Rock Bullpoint, Gr 2 winning son of Snitzel - Salade - who was trained by Bart, and the dual Gr 1 winning son of High Chaparral Monaco Consul (who enjoyed a Gr 2 winner on VRC Derby Day with Mumm Wakeful Stakes victress Tiamo Grace).
is competitive. Magic Millions is about track record with 2YOs given the type of yearling that gets sent there. If you are going to purchase a Golden Slipper winner out of an auction ring it is most likely to be Magic Millions.”
The hunt begins for the next Capitalist.