Barb Gould Uskup is an Aiken, South Carolina real estate agent who originally hails from the North Shore of Chicago. She grew up with a passion for horses, starting at the early age of two. She remembers riding her first pony named "Cookie" and her dad leading her over her first jump, in a Western Saddle no less, a log they found in a field.  As her passion for horses continued to flourish, she began competing by showing hunters and jumpers. She then gained traction and success in U.S. and International circuits in the jumper division, participating in major Grand Prix's and eventually a World Cup Final in Tampa, Florida in 1989. In 1998 Barb began playing polo with the encouragement of her then husband, a semi-professional polo player. 25 + years later she has competed and accumulated many victories in numerous polo tournaments from low to high goal polo and has played both nationally and internationally. She continues to play to this day, mostly for fun on many of her homebred horses and occasionally competes in USPA tournaments hosted by local polo clubs. Barb graduated from Boston College with a Bachelor of Arts degree and continued her education at Babson College where she gained an MBA. Barb then started her sales career in Boston with Proctor and Gamble. She followed this with a small stint in advertising for J. Walter Thompson in Chicago.  Though strong in sales and advertising, Barb's passion for horses and all things equestrian never faltered, and she eventually would leave the world of advertising to get back to her roots. Eventually, she opened an equestrian boarding and training facility in Lake Forest Illinois called Dunroven Farm with Rush Weeden as her head trainer. Ultimately, Barb combined her passion for horses with her sales expertise and began her Real Estate career in Barrington Illinois in 1994. She was a multi-million-dollar producer for the next ten years by specializing in luxury horse properties, high-end residential homes, and estates. During this time Barb would often come to Aiken, South Carolina to play polo and fell in love with the quaint, small town. She felt she had finally found a place that offered everything she needed with temperate weather, a robust equine culture, fabulous footing for the horses, and quaint Southern charm. She knew Aiken was in a perfect location nestled between Augusta, Georgia and Columbia, South Carolina. It was only two hours from the beach or the mountains with nearby airports that offered easy service to anywhere around the world. Because of Aiken’s bustling equine culture and perfect locale, Barb decided to choose Aiken as her home in 2004, where she built a premier Equestrian facility. Over the years, she has designed horse facilities and estates of various sizes and for multiple disciplines. She has completed numerous successful home and farm remodels and has also designed many awe-inspiring luxury horse ranches for residential use. As a licensed Broker Associate with the Carolina Real Estate Company, she has enjoyed serving her clients in the Aiken market area and has had the privilege of assisting them in finding their perfect homes for them and their horses. From a cottage in town for the seasonal horseperson, vacant land for the construction of a dream home or farm, to a large professional facility she has diligently worked to earn her client’s respect while serving their best interests regardless of their budget or needs. Barb Gould Uskup’s deep-seated love for all things “horse” coupled with her keen eye for the real estate makes her an excellent choice to help you find the right property that fits not only your needs but those of your horses as well.