Kroll’s Fall Harvest Farm

What Kroll’s Fall Harvest Farm does

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm is a family-owned agritourism and agricultural education business founded in 1996 and operated from a single location at 13236 W. Townline Rd., Waukegan, Illinois. The company generates revenue through seasonal on-site experiences including a curriculum-themed corn maze, guided hayrides, a petting zoo, pumpkin sales, concessions, and a gift shop during its fall season (mid-September through October 31), and through fresh precut Christmas trees, handmade wreaths, roping, and related holiday decor during its November–December season. Pricing is structured around tiered unit pricing: weekend general admission requires 3-hour time-slot tickets ($12–$14 per person ages 3+), while weekdays operate on a pay-per-activity basis (corn maze $6–$8, hayrides $4), with pumpkins priced $1–$50+ by size and Christmas trees averaging $13–$15 per foot.

The business also operates two distinct B2C extensions. First, an ag-education field trip program serves 50+ schools with grade-appropriate curriculum covering corn plants, chicken breeds, gourd history, pollination, crop rotation, and farm animal care, priced at $12 per student with free teachers. Second, Holiday Porch Planter Classes launched in 2023 offer 2-hour guided workshops, both at the farm and at off-site partner venues such as local breweries. The 2025 season expanded Christmas tree sourcing to a third farm in response to national tree shortages, and the farm introduced a GPS-enabled virtual maze game through its Farm App. Marketing is primarily organic, relying on word-of-mouth, a bilingual website, Facebook for weather updates, and earned media coverage in Taste of Home, Travel and Leisure, and House Beautiful.

The business has approximately 5 employees and operates as a bootstrapped, privately held family enterprise with no external funding, parent company, or institutional ownership. Distribution is fully direct-to-consumer across a single physical site, online ticket sales for weekends and Columbus Day, email-based school and group reservations, and off-site partner-hosted classes. Technology is minimal — limited to basic e-commerce ticketing and the GPS-enabled farm app — with no proprietary platforms, APIs, AI/ML capabilities, patents, or disclosed integrations. The company's competitive positioning rests on 29 years of brand recognition, deep local roots in the Chicagoland market, and a defensible school field trip pipeline rather than on technology or scale advantages.

Name

Kroll’s Fall Harvest Farm

Legal name

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm

Website

https://krollsfarm.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm is a family-owned agritourism and ag-education farm in Waukegan, Illinois, founded in 1996, operating seasonal fall experiences (corn maze, hayrides, petting zoo, pumpkins), Christmas tree sales, holiday porch planter classes, and curriculum-aligned school field trips serving 50+ schools.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agritourism

NAICS

Other Crop Farming (1119)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Farm-to-Table & Agritourism Dining Experiences (Farm Visits, Harvest Meals) (THAJAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Farmers’ Markets & Farm Stands (Fresh Food) (CRAHAHAE)

Keywords

• Agritourism farm
• Pumpkin patch
• Corn maze
• Christmas tree sales
• Farm education

Headquarters

HQ city

Waukegan

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. General Admission Tickets: Weekend general admission tickets (required on Saturdays, Sundays, and Columbus Day) include hayride, corn maze, and animal area access. Time-slot ticketing with 3-hour windows.
2. Individual Activity Fees (Weekdays): On weekdays no general admission is required; customers pay per activity individually (maze, hayride, pumpkins). Combo tickets for hayride and maze available online at a discount.
3. Pumpkin Sales: Pumpkins sold individually, priced by size from $1 to $50+. Also includes gourds, Indian corn, mini pumpkins, straw bales, corn stalk bundles, and fall mums.
4. Concessions and Food: On-site food and beverage sales including pumpkin donuts, popcorn, hot/cold drinks, cookies, candy, cider slushees, and caramel apples.
5. School Field Trips and Group Packages: Field trip bookings for schools at $12/student and group event packages at $12/person (weekday) or $14/person (Friday evenings). Minimum group sizes apply.
6. Holiday Porch Planter Classes: Private or public 2-hour classes on creating holiday porch pots, offered since 2023. Includes guided demonstration and all supplies. Hosted at local businesses (e.g., breweries) with first drink included.
7. Christmas Trees and Decor: Fresh precut Christmas trees sold November through end of season, priced at approximately $13-$15 per foot. Also sells handmade wreaths, swags, roping, boughs, tree stands, ornaments, centerpieces, and tree nutrient bags. Open 7 days a week.
8. Animal Feed: Large animal feed available for $3.00 per cup or quarters for the chicken feeder.
9. Wholesale Pumpkin Orders: Bulk/wholesale pricing available for orders over $500.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm operates a seasonal agritourism and ag-education farm in Waukegan, Illinois, offering fall activities (corn maze, hayrides, petting zoo, pumpkin sales, concessions, gift shop) and holiday offerings (fresh precut Christmas trees, wreaths, and holiday porch planter classes). The farm provides curriculum-aligned agricultural education field trips to over 50 schools and runs group event packages with reserved picnic areas and optional bonfires.

Product overview

Kroll's Fall Harvest Farm is an agritourism and ag-education family farm offering seasonal fall experiences and Christmas trees. The core products include a Corn Maze with educational curriculum, Hay Rides with farm tours, Pumpkins and Fall Mums for purchase, and a Petting Zoo with farm animals. Food concessions (pumpkin donuts, popcorn, hot/cold beverages, candy) and a Gift Shop provide additional visitor offerings. The farm also offers Group Packages and Ag Education Field Trips for schools and organizations. During the holiday season, Fresh Precut Christmas Trees are sold along with handmade wreaths, decorations, and accessories. Holiday Porch Planter Classes were introduced in 2023 as an additional service for private and public groups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corn Maze Educational corn maze experience featuring annual curriculum-based themes and a virtual maze game accessible via the Farm App with GPS map functionality, offered during the fall season for families and school groups.
• Hay Rides Guided farm tours covering agricultural topics including crops, pollination, crop rotation, and farming practices, with age-appropriate curriculum for school field trips and general visitors.
• Pumpkins and Fall Mums Pre-picked pumpkins in various sizes, shapes, and specialty breeds along with fall chrysanthemums, plus gourds, Indian corn, mini pumpkins, straw bales, corn stalk bundles, priced by size from $1 to $50+.
• Petting Zoo Interactive animal experience featuring goats, donkeys, alpacas, miniature horses, sheep, chickens, and turkeys with QR codes linking to educational animal videos for school and family visitors.
• Concessions On-site food and beverage offerings including pumpkin donuts, fresh popcorn, kettle corn, hot chocolate, apple cider, cookies, candy, cold drinks, cider slushees, and caramel apples sold to farm visitors.
• Gift Shop On-site retail shop offering fall decorations, Halloween party supplies, and pumpkin carving supplies including knives, scoops, carving stencils, and candles for farm visitors.
• Fresh Precut Christmas Trees and Decor Fresh precut Christmas trees (Balsam Fir, Fraser Fir, Canaan Fir, White Pine, Blue Spruce, Black Hills Spruce, Douglas Fir, Concolor Fir) ranging from 3-14+ feet, plus handmade wreaths, swags, roping, boughs, tree stands, and ornaments sold during the holiday season.
• Holiday Porch Planter Classes Two-hour guided classes teaching participants to create holiday porch pots, available as private or public sessions for businesses, breweries, clubs, or private parties. Includes all supplies and first drink at brewery-hosted classes.
• Ag Education Field Trips School field trip program with curriculum covering corn plants, chickens, history of gourds, pollination, crop rotation, and farm animal care. Includes maze access, hayrides, animal visits, and a small pumpkin for each student at $12 per student.
• Group Packages Private group event packages including maze admission, hayride, animal visit, and reserved picnic tables with optional bonfire for $12-$14 per person for groups of 20+ on weekdays and Friday evenings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50+ schools served annually with ag-education programs

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Blackberry Farm: Aurora, IL historic farm site offering fall festival with pumpkins, hayrides, and crafts. Comparable agritourism programming for Chicago-area families, but operated by a park district rather than a private family farm.
• Abbey Farms: Aurora, IL farm offering fall festival with pumpkin picking, corn maze, and family activities. Comparable regional agritourism competitor for the same west-suburban Chicago family market.

Direct peers

• Goebbert's Pumpkin Patch: South Barrington, IL agritourism operation with pumpkin patch, corn maze, animal land, and fall food. Comparable scale and product breadth serving the same Chicagoland family demographic.
• All Seasons Orchard: Woodstock, IL orchard offering apple and pumpkin picking, corn maze, and fall activities. Comparable agritourism model with overlapping seasonal product set in northern Illinois.
• Siegel's Cottonwood Farm: Lockport, IL pumpkin farm with corn maze, hayrides, and farm animals. Directly comparable Midwest family pumpkin farm with similar agritourism offering and school field trip programming.
• Richardson Adventure Farm: Large Illinois agritourism farm in Spring Grove featuring an extensive corn maze, pumpkin patch, and fall activities. Comparable for corn maze / pumpkin patch model and overlapping Chicagoland catchment.
• Bengtson's Pumpkin Farm: Family-owned Illinois pumpkin farm offering a corn maze, hayrides, petting zoo, pig races, and concessions. Directly comparable as a Chicago-area agritourism destination competing for the same family and school segments.
• Didier's Pumpkin Farm: Lincolnshire, IL family farm with pumpkin picking, corn maze, and seasonal activities. Same Lake County / northern Illinois market as Kroll's with a near-identical product mix.
• Heap's Giant Pumpkin Farm: Minooka, IL pumpkin farm with corn maze, hayrides, and family activities. Comparable Illinois family-run pumpkin farm competing for the same fall agritourism visitor.

Emerging players

• Windy Acres Farm: Geneva, IL family farm with fall festival, pumpkin patch, and corn maze offerings. Comparable but smaller-scale Chicagoland agritourism peer with overlapping product set.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kroll%E2%80%99s-fall-harvest-farm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kroll’s Fall Harvest Farm