VERGER

What VERGER does

The Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church (VGEC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit membership organization founded in 1989 and headquartered in Round Rock, Texas. It serves lay liturgical ministers known as vergers — and indirectly the parishes, dioceses, and Anglican Communion communities they support — across the Episcopal Church in the United States, the Anglican Church of Canada, the Church of England, and the broader Anglican Communion globally. The guild supports over 1,000 active members through 16+ diocesan chapters and has hosted 35+ annual conferences since 1989.

The VGEC's core offerings are delivered through a web-based technology stack anchored by secure.vergers.org, which handles membership processing, renewals, event registration, and the volunteer-operated Guild Shop at shop.vergers.org. Content channels include vergers.org, the VergerTV YouTube channel managed by the VGEC President, a Facebook community, and a Google Maps membership directory. Its flagship intellectual product is 'A Course of Training for a Verger' — a self-study program priced at $65, delivered as a password-protected PDF, requiring clergy endorsement, and conferring the 'Fellow of the Vergers Guild' designation upon completion. Custom Fellow's Virges in dark mahogany, manufactured under partnership with Liddle Creative in Smyrna, Tennessee, are sold for $225 exclusively to training graduates.

The business model combines four recurring and transactional revenue streams: $40 annual membership dues (with a 6-month free trial at try.vergers.org as the entry point), $65 training course sales, Guild Shop merchandise sales, and approximately $250-per-person annual conference registration fees, partially offset by scholarships from the Mark Emory Graham Fund. Go-to-market is community-led, relying on diocesan chapter referrals, clergy endorsements for training enrollment, the annual conference, and word-of-mouth within the Episcopal and Anglican networks rather than paid acquisition.

Name

VERGER

Legal name

Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church

Website

https://vergers.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church (VGEC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit founded in 1989, serving 1,000+ lay liturgical ministers (vergers) across the Episcopal Church and Anglican Communion through training, certification, diocesan chapters, and annual conferences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Round Rock

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Annual Membership Dues: Paid membership in the VGEC costs $40 per year and provides access to all VGEC resources, membership card, certificate, directory inclusion, committee participation, and voting rights at Annual Conference. A free six-month trial membership is offered for new members.
2. Training Course Sales: The VGEC sells its self-study training course 'A Course of Training for a Verger' for $65. The course is delivered as a password-protected PDF and enrollment requires clergy endorsement. Completing the course results in 'Fellow of the Vergers Guild' designation.
3. Guild Shop Product Sales: The Guild Shop, operated by volunteers, sells verger-related items including the Fellow's Virge ($225) and other vestments and regalia. The shop has been the leading source of verger items since 1990.
4. Conference Registration Fees: Annual conferences charge registration fees (approximately $250 per person for vergers, with additional fees for guests and optional activities like sunset cruises). Scholarships from the Mark Emory Graham Scholarship Fund cover $200 of registration for eligible attendees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church (VGEC) is a nonprofit membership association that supports laypersons serving as vergers in Episcopal and Anglican churches. Its primary deliverables are an annual individual membership ($40/year) granting access to resources, training, and fellowship; a self-study certification training course 'A Course of Training for a Verger' ($65); custom liturgical merchandise such as the Fellow's Virge ($225) sold through the volunteer-run Guild Shop; and an annual multi-day conference featuring workshops, worship, and networking.

Product overview

The Vergers Guild of the Episcopal Church (VGEC) offers a membership-based service organization centered around its verger ministry support. The core offerings include an online Membership Management System for processing memberships and renewals, VergerTV YouTube channel for communications, the Guild Shop for verger-related merchandise, and the Training Course 'A Course of Training for a Verger' as a self-study program with clergy endorsement. Add-on offerings include the Fellow's Virge (custom mahogany ceremonial staff for training completers), commissioning services for new vergers, and the Annual Conference. The organization supports over 1,000 active members through chapters across various dioceses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• VGEC Annual Membership Annual individual membership in the VGEC priced at $40/year, providing members with a membership card, printable certificate, directory inclusion, eligibility for committee service, access to the VGEC Training Course, voting rights at the Annual Conference, and the Seal of the Vergers Guild for use on vestments. Designed for individual lay vergers and those training for verger ministry in Episcopal, Anglican Church of Canada, Church of England, and other Anglican Communion churches.
• A Course of Training for a Verger

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Liddle CreativeminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerLiddle Creative in Smyrna, Tennessee is the artisan that hand-makes and finishes the Fellow's Virge for the VGEC. The virge is custom-made of dark mahogany wood with fine details, spiral design, and VGEC official seal finial.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Order of the Daughters of the King: An Episcopal women's religious order organized around local chapters with membership dues, training materials, and an annual gathering. Shares VGEC's structure of diocesan chapters, member-led governance, and Episcopal-specific mission.
• Forward Movement: An Episcopal publishing and discipleship organization that produces training materials and resources for lay ministry across the Episcopal Church. Comparable in its denominational focus on lay formation and resource distribution.
• Brotherhood of Saint Andrew: An Episcopal lay men's ministry organized into chapters with membership, devotions, and leadership development. Comparable chapter-and-membership structure and Episcopal lay-ministry focus.
• American Guild of Organists: The leading professional association for church organists in the US and abroad. Like VGEC, it is a membership guild that provides training, certification, local chapters, and an annual national convention for a specific liturgical role.
• National Association of Pastoral Musicians: A Catholic professional association for musicians and liturgical ministers that offers membership, certification programs, regional chapters, and an annual assembly. Closely parallels VGEC's guild-plus-training model, though in a different denomination.
• Association of Anglican Musicians: A professional organization serving musicians and clergy serving in Episcopal and Anglican churches. Comparable in serving a specific liturgical role within the same Anglican tradition, with membership and conference offerings.
• Hymn Society in the United States and Canada: A scholarly and professional society for those interested in hymnody, organized with membership dues and an annual conference. Mirrors VGEC's combination of education, fellowship, and denominational/tradition-specific identity.

Regional players

• Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge (SPCK): A UK-based Anglican publisher and ministry that produces training resources and books for lay and ordained ministry. Provides a comparable faith-based publishing and training role within the same Anglican Communion but primarily serves the UK.

Broad incumbents

• Church Pension Group: The principal benefits and financial services organization serving clergy and lay employees of the Episcopal Church. Operates broadly in the same Episcopal professional ecosystem but as a much larger institutional incumbent rather than a member-led guild.

Others

• The Living Church Foundation: An independent Episcopal media ministry providing news, commentary, and educational resources. Adjacent ecosystem participant with overlapping audience of lay leaders, clergy, and engaged Episcopalians.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/VergerTV
• Facebookfacebook.com/vergerguild
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vergers-guild-of-the-episcopal-church

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 VERGER