Virginia Association of Fairs

Name

Virginia Association of Fairs

Legal name

Virginia Association of Fairs, Inc.

Website

https://vafairs.us

Company type

Private

Founded year

1917

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fair and Festival Trade Association

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), All Other Amusement and Recreation Industries (71399), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAGAFAO

Local Community & Multi-Category Fairs

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Exhibitions, Fairs & Expos (Consumer/Public)

SECONDARYTHAHAAAH

Fairgrounds & Expo Parks

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Conference & Convention Venues (Convention Centers, Civic Centers)

SECONDARYMPAGAFAA

General Consumer Expos & Trade Shows

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Exhibitions, Fairs & Expos (Consumer/Public)

SECONDARYTHAHABAJ

Retail, Consumer Goods & Lifestyle Shows Organizers

Travel & Hospitality/MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions)/Exhibition & Trade Show Organizers

Keywords

• Fair industry association
• Membership association services
• Agricultural fair support
• Conference and event services
• Youth scholarship programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Woodstock

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Fair member dues ($150-200 annually depending on timing) and associate member dues ($125-200 for fiscal year 2026-27) constitute the primary revenue stream. Membership runs on fiscal year April 1 - March 31.
2. Conference Registration: The annual conference (held at Williamsburg Lodge) generates revenue through registration fees for the 108th conference in January 2026, with the 110th conference planned for January 2027.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Virginia Association of Fairs is a nonprofit membership association that represents and supports Virginia fairs, festivals, and associate vendors. It provides annual memberships, conference participation, judging education, networking, youth scholarships, pageant programming, and member benefits.

Product overview

Virginia Association of Fairs is a member-driven association serving fairs and festivals across the Commonwealth of Virginia. The organization offers two primary membership types: Fair Membership for fair organizations and Associate Membership for supporting companies. The association administers the annual Miss VAF Pageant providing over $16,000 in college scholarships, and the Youth Leadership Scholarship Contest offering over $10,000 in scholarships. Additional programs include educational initiatives like the Virginia Spring Judging School, award programs (Fair Person of the Year, Hazel M. Staley Scholarship Award, Jensen Hoover Impact Award, Media Awards), and the community service initiative Read to Succeed. The organization hosts an annual conference featuring meetings, competitions, and networking opportunities for members.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Fair Membership Annual membership for Virginia fairs, providing access to conference activities, association programs, and gate-admission benefits for the bearer and up to three guests at member fairs. Dues are $150 on or before June 30 and $200 beginning July 1.
• Associate Membership Annual membership for companies seeking to engage with and support VAF activities, with conference promotional benefits, membership cards for gate admission, and exposure to events sponsored by member fairs. Dues are $125 for fiscal year 2026-2027.
• VAF Annual Conference Paid annual conference for VAF members featuring meetings, educational sessions, awards, pageant activities, youth scholarships, judging school, and networking. The 108th conference was held January 8-11, 2026, at Williamsburg Lodge, and the 110th conference is planned for January 14-17, 2027.
• Virginia Spring Judging School Paid educational program providing fair judges with ethics classes and category-specific judging instruction. It is sponsored by Caroline County Agricultural Fair, Virginia Cooperative Extension, and VAF, and costs $20 to attend.

Quantifiable outcome

• 110,000+ books collected through Read to Succeed literacy program
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 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

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Virginia Cooperative ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Virginia Tech and Virginia State University for youth scholarship contests and agricultural education programs. The Extension provides contest leadership and facilities including Bedford County Extension Office for Judging School.
• Caroline County Agricultural FairminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsor of Virginia Spring Judging School along with Virginia Cooperative Extension and VAF.
• International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerVAF is affiliated with IAFE (fairsandexpos.com). VAF members contribute to IAFE committees and attend IAFE conferences for professional development.
• Williamsburg LodgeminorOthersHost venue for annual VAF conferences. Conference history at Williamsburg Lodge includes 108th (2026) and 110th (2027) conferences at 310 South England Street, Williamsburg, VA.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Direct peers

• Outdoor Amusement Business Association (OABA): National trade association for the outdoor amusement and carnival industry, including many of VAF's associate members (carnival companies, ride operators). Both organizations sit at the intersection of fairs, carnivals, and mobile amusement, and frequently co-engage with the same fairs.
• International Association of Fairs and Expositions (IAFE): National umbrella trade association for North American fairs and expositions. VAF is explicitly affiliated with IAFE, members cross-participate in each other's conferences, and IAFE provides VAF's higher-tier professional development, training, and policy advocacy — making it the most directly comparable peer.

Others

• North American Midway Entertainment (NAME): Largest traveling midway provider in North America, supplying carnival rides and games to hundreds of fairs annually. Many of NAME's customers are VAF member fairs, making it a key ecosystem participant even though it is a vendor rather than a competing association.
• Wade Shows: Carnival operator providing rides and attractions to fairs across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Comparable to VAF associate members like Cole Shows Amusements and Deggeller Attractions in serving the same fair customers in overlapping geographies.
• Reithoffer Shows: Long-running U.S. carnival company that provides midway entertainment to fairs across multiple states. Operates in the same supplier ecosystem that VAF's associate members belong to and is frequently contracted by VAF-member fairs.
• Deggeller Attractions: Established carnival and midway company listed as a VAF associate member and represented on the VAF board. Provides rides, games and food to fairs in the Mid-Atlantic region, including VAF member fairs, making it a deeply embedded ecosystem partner.
• Cole Shows Amusements: Carnival company listed as a VAF associate member with representation on the VAF board. Provides midway services to fairs in the Virginia region, making it a directly connected ecosystem participant rather than a competing association.

Regional players

• Texas Association of Fairs and Events (TAFE): State-level fair association serving Texas fairs and events. Operates with a similar membership-dues-plus-annual-conference model, supports member fairs with scholarship and award programs, and is the closest structural analog to VAF in a different geography.
• Pennsylvania State Association of County Fairs: Pennsylvania's statewide fair association with membership drawn from county and community fairs. Closely parallel to VAF in governance structure (fair-member dues, associate vendors, annual convention), serving as a peer benchmark for program breadth and dues pricing.
• Midwest Fairs Association: Regional association representing fairs across multiple Midwestern U.S. states. Comparable to VAF in mission (member-fair support, annual convention, scholarship programs) but organized at a multi-state level, illustrating VAF's potential scale ceiling.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/VirginiaAssociationofFairs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 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 Virginia Association of Fairs