Quillin Leather & Tack Since 1982
On a back table in a corner of the workshop, there are neat rows of brass plates, each engraved with a name. If you’re there on the right day, the array of names might read as a who’s who of the horse world.
These plates will eventually get fixed to handmade leather halters, all trimmed and sewn and polished along Main Street at Quillin Leather & Tack. About a dozen employees, working on century-old machines, produce about 18,000 halters each year. Their work is sought after, not just at horse farms all over Bourbon County, but across the world.
“Quillin’s impact on not only Paris, but the Thoroughbred industry, is unmatched,” says Lauren Biddle, executive director of the Paris Chamber of Commerce. “He has become a worldwide brand.”
Ralph Quillin founded his leather business more than four decades ago, out of a corner of his house. By Ralph’s telling, he stumbled into the leather trade. After college, Ralph said, he got a job making custom leather sandals.
