The Made in Virginia Awards are an ode to the boundless creativity flourishing within the state, showcasing the best bites, niftiest innovations, and showstopping creations crafted right here in the Commonwealth.
You can win! Winners will be included in our December 2024 issue, and one standout winner in each of our 5 categories seen below will receive a $500 prize. Entry costs $25 per submission/product.
THE 2024 MADE IN VIRGINIA AWARDS ARE NOW CLOSED. WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU AGAIN NEXT YEAR! FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS YEAR’S GUIDELINES, JUDGES, AND SAMPLE DROP-OFF, READ BELOW:
The awards are open to any Virginia-based business whose products are manufactured in-state and will be available for retail purchase from Nov. 1-Dec. 31, 2024, at minimum.
Categories include:
- Food
- Drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic)
- Style & Beauty (skincare, bath products, fragrances, clothing, jewelry, bags, other accessories)
- Home & Garden (furniture, kitchenwares, decor, art, gifts, gardening tools, pet goods, children’s toys)
- Outdoor & Recreation (wilderness, sailing, and hunting/fishing gear, sporting supplies, musical instruments)
After thorough review and deliberation by our expert category judges and editorial staff, winners will be notified in early August.
Questions? Contact associate editor, Hope Cartwright at [email protected].
Guidelines:
SUBMISSIONS ARE OPEN FROM MONDAY, JUNE 17, 2024 TO MONDAY, JULY 22, 2024.
EACH SUBMISSION REQUIRES AN ENTRY FEE OF $25.
Please ship or drop off all samples to:
Virginia Living Magazine
c/o Made in Virginia Awards
109 E. Cary St.
Richmond, VA 23219
We will accept delivery by mail or in-person. For in-person delivery, our office hours are 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Monday-Friday.
A note on perishable items: We will begin taste testing on Friday, July 26. Submission samples must be at our office by no later than Thursday, July 25 to be tested and in the running for the awards. If your product is perishable, please mark CLEARLY on the packaging. To ensure freshness, we suggest perishable items be sent in priority shipping the week of July 22.
ALL PRODUCTS SUBMITTED FOR CONSIDERATION MUST SEND A SAMPLE.*
*A note on samples: If your product is too large to transport to our office in Richmond, please contact Associate Editor, Hope Cartwright at [email protected].
All items must be:
- Packaged and produced in Virginia.
- Available for retail from Nov. 1-Dec. 31, 2024, at minimum (online-only sales also accepted).
Categories & Criteria:
Food
We will be judging food on the criteria of taste, innovation, packaging, and overall appeal. (Is it interesting? Easy to prepare? Unusual?)
Category judge: Stephanie Ganz, accomplished cook and writer. She has bylines in Eater, The Kitchn, Bon Appetit, and more. Her original recipes, interviews, essays, and bonus content have been published in print and on the web.
Drink
This can be alcoholic or non-alcoholic—coffee, tea, soda, etc.
Category judge: Frank Morgan, wine columnist. He writes the wine column for The Virginian-Pilot and contributes to other publications. He serves as director of judging for the Virginia Governor’s Cup Wine Competition and manages the Monticello Wine Trail Competition and the Shenandoah Valley Wine Trail Competition.
Style & Beauty
- Style: Includes clothing, shoes, jewelry, bags, outdoor wear, accessories, and more.
- Beauty: Includes lotions, soaps, bath salts/bombs, hair products, lip balms, and more.
Category judge: Heather Bien, lifestyle content creator and writer. Bien grew up in Richmond and covers interiors, trends, and style. She and her husband, Adam, live between their homes on Capitol Hill and Urbanna. She loves good style, good food, frequent travel, and a classic stripe.
Home & Garden
- Home: Includes furniture, kitchenware, bedding, pet goods, stationary, toys, decor like artwork, candles, rugs, and more.
- Garden: Includes gardening supplies, decorative plants, backyard games, and outdoor/patio furniture.
Category judge: Charlotte Safavi, Northern Virginia-based magazine writer, stylist, and producer. Her work has appeared in Better Homes & Gardens, Traditional Home, House Beautiful, HGTV Magazine, Southern Living, Domino, Dwell, and many more.
Outdoor & Recreation
- Outdoor: Includes hiking and camping gear, hunting and fishing supplies, boating needs, and more.
- Recreation: Includes sports equipment, riding gear, game tables like billiards, musical instruments, and more.
Category judge: Eric Wallace, award-winning writer. Wallace excels in producing engaging content for top national outlets like Outside, Backpacker, WIRED, and Atlas Obscura. His expertise is writing about the outdoors.
Other notes:
- Photos and descriptions are required of all products.
- Samples should be available to borrow for later photography, if necessary.
- Samples must be delivered to or dropped off at our office in Richmond.
- If you are a previous Made in Virginia winner, but you would like to submit a different type of product (for example: you won in 2018 for your soap, but you also make candles), you are welcome to submit.
- We do not mail samples back to senders.
