Vermont Brewers Association

What Vermont Brewers Association does

The Vermont Brewers Association (VBA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit trade association founded in 1995 and headquartered in Richmond, Vermont. It represents Vermont's craft brewing industry, currently encompassing 67-77 member breweries that collectively produce 357,138 barrels of beer annually and generate $533M in statewide economic impact (2025 figures). Vermont ranks #1 in the United States on a per-capita basis for both breweries (14.6 per capita) and economic impact ($1,053 per 21+ adult), with the VBA serving as the primary coordinating body for industry marketing, education, and advocacy.

The VBA's product surface spans flagship events, membership programs, and digital consumer tools. Its anchor event is the annual Vermont Brewers Festival, entering its 33rd year in July 2026 at Waterfront Park in Burlington, with tickets priced at $60/session. The association also runs the Vermont Craft Brewers Conference (250-300 attendees, 70 exhibitor booths), the Beer Trails and Brewery Challenge passport program (driving over 1 million annual brewery visits), and multi-tier membership for breweries, allied partners, retailers, and enthusiasts. Initiatives such as Pour the Girls extend the VBA's scope into workforce development for women in beverage and hospitality. The technology footprint is conventional: a WordPress website (vermontbrewers.com), a Shopify merchandise storefront, a beer passport mobile app, and standard social channels on Instagram, Facebook, and X.

The VBA's revenue model combines recurring membership dues across four tiers with transactional revenue from the festival and conference, plus merchandise sales and donations. Its most consequential recent strategic action was successful advocacy for H.921 legislation (effective July 1, 2026), which enables Vermont breweries to self-distribute up to 3,000 barrels annually and expands tasting-room flexibility — a regulatory win achieved alongside the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery and the Necrason Group. Day-to-day operations are led by Executive Director Emma Arian and a 12-person board drawn from member breweries.

Name

Vermont Brewers Association

Legal name

Vermont Brewers Association

Website

https://vermontbrewers.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Vermont Brewers Association is a non-profit trade association founded in 1995 that represents 67-77 Vermont craft breweries through marketing, education, and legislative advocacy, anchored by its 33rd annual Vermont Brewers Festival and supporting programs like the Beer Passport and Vermont Craft Brewers Conference.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Association Services for the Craft Brewing Industry

NAICS

Breweries (31212), Breweries (312120)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Beverages (2080), Malt Beverages (2082)

akta.pro primary industry

Beer Brewing & Brands (CRADAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Alcohol Subscription & Wine Clubs (Retail) (CRANABAF)

Keywords

• Craft beer association
• Brewery membership programs
• Beer festival events
• Craft brewery advocacy
• Brewing industry conferences

Headquarters

HQ city

University Of Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Brewery Membership Dues: Vermont breweries pay dues to join the VBA. Membership tiers include Brewery Membership, Allied Partner membership, Retail & Craft Beer Bar membership, and Enthusiast membership. The association provides marketing, education, advocacy, and community-building services to members.
2. Vermont Brewers Festival: The VBA organizes and runs the annual Vermont Brewers Festival, selling tickets at $60 per session. The 33rd annual festival takes place July 17-18 at Waterfront Park in Burlington, VT. Ticket sales and vendor/sponsor fees generate significant revenue for the association.
3. Vermont Craft Brewers Conference: Annual professional conference with registration fees, exhibitor booth sales, and sponsorship opportunities. The conference hosts 250-300 attendees with an exhibitor hall fitting 70 booths and various sponsorship tiers.
4. Merchandise Sales: The VBA sells festival merchandise and branded apparel through its online store (vermontbrewers.myshopify.com) and at festival events.
5. Donations: The association accepts donations through its website to support VBA programs and initiatives.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Vermont Brewers Association is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit trade association that represents and supports Vermont craft breweries. Its core deliverables are tiered membership programs (Brewery, Allied Partners, Retail & Craft Beer Bar, and Enthusiast), the annual Vermont Brewers Festival (in its 33rd year, billed as one of the largest craft-beer festivals in the United States), and the Vermont Craft Brewers Conference — alongside statewide advocacy, education, scholarship funding, and a merchandise online store.

Product overview

The Vermont Brewers Association (VBA) is a trade association founded in 1995 that promotes and strengthens the culture of craft brewing in Vermont through marketing, education, and advocacy. The VBA operates several core programs: the annual Vermont Brewers Festival (33rd annual in 2026), a Beer Trails/Passport Program encouraging brewery visits, the Vermont Craft Brewers Conference for industry education, and membership programs for breweries, retail partners, and enthusiasts. Additional initiatives include Pour the Girls supporting women in the industry, a jobs board, newsletter, and merchandise store. The VBA connects Vermont's 74 craft breweries with consumers through advocacy, events, and community-building programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Beer Worth Finding: The tagline and brand message of the Vermont Brewers Association used to promote Vermont craft beer
• Pour the Girls
• Vermont Brewers Festival

Products and services

• Brewery Membership Annual membership tier for Vermont-licensed craft breweries providing collective advocacy, festival vending access, conference inclusion, and member directory listing.
• Allied Partners Membership Trade-partner membership for businesses adjacent to the brewing industry (suppliers, equipment vendors, distributors), offering category exposure through VBA's audience, festival, and directory.
• Retail & Craft Beer Bar Membership Membership category for Vermont craft-beer bars, bottle shops, and retail accounts, providing recognition and connection to local brewery supply networks.
• Enthusiast Membership Consumer-level membership for individual craft-beer fans who want to support the state's brewing community, receive member benefits, and engage with the association.
• Vermont Brewers Festival Large-scale annual ticketed craft-beer festival featuring member breweries and allied partners; multiple sessions with per-session ticket pricing.
• Vermont Craft Brewers Conference Annual educational conference providing brewing-industry training, networking, and professional development for VBA members and the broader brewing community.
• VBA Online Merchandise Store Direct-to-consumer online store selling VBA-branded merchandise (apparel, drinkware, glassware, etc.) via a Shopify e-commerce platform.

Quantifiable outcome

• $533M economic impact generated by Vermont craft brewing in 2025, up 15.9% from $460M in 2024
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Vermont Department of Liquor and LotterycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026The VBA collaborated with the Vermont Department of Liquor and Lottery on H.921 legislation that allows Vermont breweries to self-distribute up to 3,000 barrels annually and expands tasting-room opportunities, effective July 1, 2026.
• Necrason GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 June 2026The VBA worked alongside Necrason Group in advocating for and shaping H.921 legislation benefiting Vermont's brewing and hospitality industries.
• Wasted*minorGTM or Marketing PartnerWasted* provides eco-friendly portable sanitation solutions for the Vermont Brewers Festival, saving 1.5 trees (459 rolls of wipes), 5,967 gallons of water, and avoiding 218 lbs of carbon emissions through sustainable practices.
• Brewers AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe VBA works with the national Brewers Association for industry data compilation, statistics, and benchmarking. The national Brewers Association reported that for the first time in 20 years, craft brewery closures outpaced openings in 2024, with over 800 craft breweries closing nationwide.
• Valley MaltminorOthersValley Malt supplies locally grown pilsner malt to Vermont breweries for collaboration beers, including the VBA's Vermont Brewers Festival collaboration beer 'Everywhere at Once.'
• Champlain Valley HopsminorOthersChamplain Valley Hops supplies Vermont-grown hops including Cascade variety to member breweries. Featured in VBA collaboration beer projects.
• Briess Malt & IngredientsminorOthersBriess supplies pilsner malt and other brewing ingredients to Vermont breweries for collaboration and festival beers.
• Nek GrainsminorOthersNek Grains supplies Vermont-grown flaked oats and flaked wheat to Vermont breweries, used in the VBA's Vermont Brewers Festival collaboration beer.
• HopsteinerminorOthersHopsteiner supplies Comet Salvo hops used in the VBA's Vermont Brewers Festival collaboration beer 'Everywhere at Once.'
• Hop GuildminorOthersThe Hop Guild facilitates relationships between Vermont breweries and hop suppliers for collaboration beers, making possible pairings like Segal Ranch Tangier hops in the VBA festival collab.
• Mad River DistillersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLawson's Finest Liquids ages its Fayston Maple Imperial Stout in Mad River Distillers' whiskey barrels, sourced from Vermont distillery partnership.
• ECHO, Leahy Center for Lake ChamplainminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerECHO collaborated with Lawson's Finest Liquids to craft 'Path of Totality' black IPA brewed with Eclipse hops, a special release for the 2024 solar eclipse event.
• Sevendays TicketsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party ticketing partner for Vermont Brewers Festival ticket sales. VBA sells tickets through sevendaystickets.com/e/vermont-brewers-festival-2026/tickets

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Ohio Craft Brewers Association: Ohio's craft brewing trade association. Mid-sized state trade peer running festivals, education, and legislative advocacy for Ohio breweries, structurally analogous to VBA.
• Oregon Brewers Guild: Oregon's craft beer trade association representing breweries statewide. Most comparable peer to VBA: state-level trade group running membership, festivals, advocacy, and industry development for a similarly dense craft beer market.
• Tennessee Craft Brewers Guild: Tennessee's craft brewing trade guild. Southeastern state-level peer providing membership, advocacy, and event programming to a smaller craft beer market, comparable to VBA's regional scope.
• Colorado Brewers Guild: Colorado's craft brewing trade association. Direct peer operating membership programs, advocacy, and signature festivals for one of the largest U.S. craft beer states, with comparable scale and mission.
• North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild: North Carolina's craft brewing trade association. State-level peer running membership, advocacy, and festivals for a fast-growing craft beer market with comparable organizational structure.
• New York State Brewers Association: New York's craft beer trade association. State-level trade body running festivals, advocacy, and member services for a large craft beer industry, directly analogous in structure to VBA's operations.
• California Craft Brewers Association: California's craft brewing trade association. Direct peer representing breweries across the largest U.S. craft beer state with comparable mission: membership, advocacy, festivals, and education.
• Massachusetts Brewers Guild: Massachusetts craft beer trade guild. New England peer with overlapping membership model, festivals, and legislative advocacy focus—comparable in size and structure to VBA.

Broad incumbents

• Brewers Association: The national U.S. trade association representing small and independent craft brewers. Directly comparable to VBA as the parent organization providing data, benchmarking, and national advocacy that VBA works alongside for state-level efforts.

Regional players

• Great Lakes Brewers Guild: Multi-state regional craft beer trade association covering Great Lakes brewers. Comparable in mission (advocacy, education, events) but operates across multiple states rather than a single jurisdiction like VBA.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/VermontBrewers
• Facebookfacebook.com/VermontBrewersAssociation
• Instagraminstagram.com/vermontbrewers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vermont-brewers-association

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 Vermont Brewers Association