By Andrew Hawkins If ever there’s been a year that technology in the racing
innovation, forcing changes in habits and opening new
industry has been more prevalent and more important than
avenues for business-as-usual operations. If anything, once
ever, 2020 is that year.
the world settles on a new normal, it may be seen as a year
Horse sales without horses. Yearling inspections without any travel. Purchasing of quality bloodstock sight unseen. These all went from being a rarity to becoming the new norm. And none of it would have been possible without the established technology Inglis had already installed, tested and proven prior to Covid-19 really hitting in March. The history books are unlikely to look back on 2020 kindly,
in which customer behaviours shifted for good across every aspect of life. The Thoroughbred auction sphere is one of many areas that has been impacted throughout 2020 right across the world, with Inglis hit hard by the timing of the first lockdown in Australia on the eve of the Australian Easter Yearling Sale. The global pandemic has continued to be a lingering presence throughout the year for Inglis—as it has for most
with the pandemic wreaking havoc on so many facets of life as businesses globally—forcing date shifts, format changes and we know—or knew—it.
INGLIS
However, it has also presented an opportunity for
50
a strict implementation of Covid-safe procedures, all in the shadow of a turbulent economic forecast.
