Owner moved to Gilroy and learned from locals to slow down and enjoy life

Published in the August 31 – September 13, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life

By Robert Airoldi

Photo by Marty Cheek  Michelle Stagnaro in her new Stagnaro Tack & Apparel on the corner of Second Street and Monterey Road in downtown Morgan Hill.

Photo by Marty Cheek
Michelle Stagnaro in her new Stagnaro Tack & Apparel on the corner of Second Street and Monterey Road in downtown Morgan Hill.

Michelle Stagnaro moved to Gilroy four years ago from Portola Valley ­— and found herself in a bit of a life quandary.

“In short, I started having a crisis,” she said. “I’d sold everything to move here and was having a huge meltdown. The Internet access was terrible, people didn’t move with a sense of urgency, and they were to friendly and chatty.”

Then one Sunday night, she went to the Station 55 restaurant in Gilroy with family and saw a diverse group of people singing Karaoke at the bar.

“Everyone in the audience would listen and applaud and high five, and really they didn’t now each other and no one was on their phone,” she said. “These people are communicating and are supportive despite the terrible singing. There was no judgment in that group. I took a bigger step back and it took about a month to realize that this is how life is supposed to be lived — like a community.”

Now the 50-year old mother of two adults sons — and her 21-year-old daughter who is a competitive show horse jumper — owns and runs Stagnaro’s Stables in Gilroy, and Tintworld in Morgan Hill. She is becoming an even bigger part of the community she has grown to love. Stagnaro’s Tack & Apparel shop opened in July in downtown Morgan Hill, and Stagnaro is looking to make the sport as affordable as possible.

Stagnaro got into the business after her daughter started riding about eight years ago.

“As a show mom, I needed to do something besides sitting ringside waiting for her to compete,” she said. “This seemed like a reasonable thing to do and I’m passionate about horses and competition.”

After opening the stables on their property in Gilroy, she had the idea of a downtown shop since 2013 but it was never the right time or she couldn’t find the right place. Then about a year ago, she thought: if not now, when?

“I decided to give it a good shot and started looking around,” she said. “In December I came downtown and saw a lot of vacant stores and wanted to be here. I started to really enjoy it here. I turned a corner and saw this place and thought this is the perfect spot. We were meant to be here.”

As only one of three tack and apparel shops in the Central Coast area – the other two are in Carmel and Portola Valley — she believes the downtown store offers quality products at reasonable prices with good customer service. Most of her employees are riders and ride at her Gilroy stables.

“I think this is just a great idea in a community that has a market and it all kind of unfolded and here we are,” she said. “What better place than a growing developing city?”
Stagnaro said the retail shop and the stables will feed off each other. Stagnaro Stables offers training and lesson programs for all levels of horses and riders. It currently trains riders of all levels and ages.

She reiterated her goal to carry similar items and focus on price point.

“We’re not selling big brand names, but the manufacturers are the same,” she said.

Born in Palo Alto, Stagnaro went to private boarding school in Utah. She never graduated high school, but did earn her GED certificate. After her mother died, she was left with a mortgage to pay, so she found a job at a stockbroker’s firm. She later went to work as a personal assistant for “some pretty big names” in the Bay Area — whom she declined to reveal — mostly in the high-tech and government arena.

Now she is focused on growing her business endeavors and getting involved in the community.

“We want to bring quality products and great customer service to Bay Area equestrians,” she said.

Stagnaro’s Tack & Apparel

Location: 17415 Monterey St., Morgan Hill
Contact: (408) 610-3366 or
[email protected]