Much has been made about the long-running cowboycore or western fashion trend. But a parallel and related trend — equestrian-inspired fashion, which takes its cues from British riding sports like dressage and show jumping — has also been on the rise, hitting a high in fall 2025 and continuing into 2026, which happens to be the Year of the Horse on the Chinese lunar calendar.
Some observers combine the western and equestrian looks together into a single “horse girl” trend; after all, the word equestrian encompasses all forms of horse sports. But the two styles are generally considered different: Whereas the western trend is more about a rugged, casual, denim-centric Americana lifestyle, traditional equestrian sport-based looks have a more traditional, tailored, tweedy, British heritage vibe.
On the collaboration front, recent examples include both initiatives targeting equestrian athletes and their fans and collections for a more mainstream audience interested in equestrian looks as fashion:
- In December 2025, Stella McCartney announced a partnership with equestrian label LeMieux, founded by a former Olympic event rider, for a capsule collection including moisture-wicking base layers and breeches, as well as fly hoods and saddle pads for the horses. In addition, McCartney, who grew up riding on her family farm in Scotland, debuted a My Little Pony collection in her Winter 2026 runway show at Paris Fashion Week, in a more playful nod to the “horse girl” style.
- Rydale, a global marketer of British countryside apparel, paired in September 2025 with Millie Stennett, a U.K.-based show jumper and equestrian influencer, for a four-piece capsule collection of co-designed clothing. The items, including a sweatshirt, rugby shorts, waistcoat, and baseball cap, are meant to combine an equestrian-inspired look with everyday functional characteristics. Fabrics are printed with a pattern incorporating snaffle bits.
- Macy’s paired with Royal Equestrian, a luxury equestrian fashion label, in August 2025 for an exclusive limited-edition Cleopatra jumpsuit, offered in black and white. While the style had equestrian-inspired functional characteristics, it was meant for all sports lovers, particularly aficionados of yoga and pilates, not just equestrian athletes. The piece, which was meant to be elegant as well as performance-based, was part of Royal Equestrian’s broader Regalia Di Roma Collection. Profits from the line went toward charities supporting horses in need.
- In July 2025, inclusively sized and accessibly priced riding apparel brand Novella Equestrian, founded by show rider and equestrian influencer Taryn Young, paired with horse blanket brand 5/A Baker for a collection of sunshirts incorporating the latter’s well-known plaid pattern.
- Last April, U.S. Equestrian, the governing body of the U.S. Equestrian Teams, renewed its decade-long agreement with Ariat International as its official apparel and performance footwear partner. The deal covers outfits for the athletes and other members of the organization, but also for fans of equestrian sports. Previously, in February, U.S. Equestrian had announced the renewal of its collaboration with designer Charles Ancona as the official show, pinque, and tail coat partner of the teams.
It should be noted that while the equestrian trend is primarily evident in the fashion space, it is also up-and-coming in the home goods sector, with horse-themed patterns, details emulating horseback-riding equipment, tweeds and plaids, and similar design elements coming into play. So far equestrian-related collaboration activity has been centered mostly on fashion, but it will be interesting to see if more examples pop up in the home area as well.
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