Virginia Air History

Ken Baker - Career Profile


Ken Baker, president and CEO of Virginia Air Distributors, Inc., is originally from Newcastle, England. The very foundation and principles that sets VA Air apart from the competition are the ones that Ken practiced during his early years of employment, which is to go above and beyond to service the customer. Ken received his Accounting/Finance degree from Newcastle Tech in England before moving forward in a career that spanned travels around the world. 

After a series of successive positions in accounting, operations and management, Ken accepted a position with Exxon as an Operational Director. Next, he was on to Borg Warner Corporation where he served as Director of Operations - Audit for several years. In 1981, Ken accepted a position with York International as VP of Finance, where he remained until 1986, when he agreed to an opportunity to take over a York Factory owned branch in Richmond, VA. In April of 1987, Virginia Air Distributors, Inc. was created and Ken remains highly involved in the business today as President and CEO of the Company. 

Timeline of Branch Openings


In 1987, Virginia Air Distributors had one Branch and fourteen employees. Today, the Company has thirteen Branches and an employee base of over one hundred and sixty employees. Our Branch locations are in Virginia (3), West Virginia (1), North Carolina (5), Ohio (3) and Pennsylvania (1). 

1988, the Company expanded its operations and opened another Branch in Chesapeake, VA. 

2001 was quite the year of growth for the Company with three Branches opening.

  • May 2001: The Richmond North Branch opened with a concentration in the supplies market.
  • June 2001: The Roanoke Branch opened its doors.
  • July 2001: The Charleston, WV Branch opened.

Growth opportunities continued in March 2002 with the acquisition of the North Carolina Market. Currently, we have Branches in Raleigh, Salisbury, Charlotte and Asheville. 

The next acquisition occurred in January 2003, with Virginia Air Distributors establishing a presence in the Tri-State market, which includes Branch locations in Cincinnati, Columbus, Cleveland and Pittsburgh. 

We opened our 13th branch in Greensboro, NC in 2006. 

As we look to the future, Virginia Air is excited about the potential growth opportunities that lie ahead. Stay tuned to see where we go next!

An independent distributor of York, Virginia Air proudly supports the following major brands: