> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.richmonder.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Richmond's haunted houses are a year-round effort for their owners - URL: https://www.richmonder.org/richmonds-haunted-houses-are-a-year-round-effort-for-their-owners/ - Published: 2026-09-24T23:37:22.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-24T23:37:22.000Z - Description: The work for next Halloween begins almost immediately after the last season ends. - Author: Student Journalist - Tags: Features, #lead 📝 This article was written by Jolene Smith, a student at Randolph-Macon. Richmond's haunted houses will put a scare into people all October long. But for the owners, September is truly frightening. “You have no social life. You have no day off,” said Kitty Barnes, COO of Red Vein haunted house in Hanover. “You will probably not sleep more than three hours any given night. You will eat poorly. You’ll be very cranky and you wonder why you are doing this. “But you know once you get through opening night, a big, big weight lifts off your shoulders.” Friday is opening night for Red Vein, but it's the culmination of a full year of work since Red Vein packed up last November. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/99/06/99067822-fdfd-42b1-ab19-555c33eefb89/content/images/2026/09/486317990_10106974439853733_1866030140964995044_n.jpg) Crews work on a haunted house in Hanover. (Jolene Smith for The Richmonder) ### **A never-ending cycle** The work for next Halloween begins almost immediately after the last season ends. “We have a lot of boring stuff, a lot of paperwork that we have to do on the business side,” said Red Vein CEO Ryan Sligh, referencing taxes, ticket systems and insurance policies. Just like a movie, haunted houses go through pre-production too, figuring out new characters, sets, logistics, and a whole new story. Barnes and Sligh attend trade shows in February and March to prepare for the upcoming season. The biggest of these shows is TransWorld’s Halloween and Attractions Show, held in St. Louis. “We’re part of the Haunted Attraction Associations, which is a fantastic resource for haunted houses because you do have this connection with other owners and creators,” Barnes said. Most haunters have a full-time job outside of scaring, which makes the web of expertise tied to this Halloween niche extremely vast. There are lawyers, HR professionals and others who participate in the trade group. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/99/06/99067822-fdfd-42b1-ab19-555c33eefb89/content/images/2026/09/2J0M3WM.jpg) A woman enjoys her lunch near a display of guts while managing a booth during the Transworld Halloween & Attractions Show. (Bill Greenblatt/UPI) ### **Rising costs create tough decisions** Like most Americans today, the haunt industry is feeling the effects of rising prices. Being a seasonal business, revenue arrives between September and November. So the rest of the year is an uphill battle on making what little is left stretch until opening night. “Just something as simple as a two by four, which is the base of every wall that we’re building, is like doubled or tripled in price.” Barnes said. While the haunt is constantly changing, it’s not financially or physically practical to make everything from scratch every year. But because of the relationships, Red Vein is able to trade props with other owners from season to season. “We can say, ‘We have these werewolf props we’re not going to use. Can you trade them for vampires?’” Sligh said. “Haunters are very resourceful,” Barnes added. “We’re great at repurposing things.” In the offseason, Red Vein has days for returning cast to come out and help clean up, build, or make art. “We had 100 foam pumpkins that we had for our staff to carve, and that is an insane amount, but we were able to use them all,” said Barnes. The cast is full of horror lovers, artists, and creators that all believe in the community that haunts have built. These aren’t places built by one mind, but by a collection of ideas, experiences, and lives. “Luckily we have such an amazing team,” Sligh said. ### **Crunch time** The last few weeks, which have led up to opening night, is the most harrowing season of a haunt. Most guests don’t see the work that goes into putting on a good show, something that’s more than cheap masks in a blackout maze yelling boo. “It’s a whole experience,” said Sligh. Prying craft store workers ask why they're purchasing 10 yards of creepy cloth and a basketful of bones in August, then guffaw about how “early” it is. Meanwhile, the team feels it is weeks behind schedule, and stressing about what can get done in time. “It just goes back to the standard mentality that haunted houses exist in October and there’s nothing beforehand,” Barnes said. “It’s just kind of like a magical thing that appears out of nowhere.” When the curtain rises on Friday night, it will have been the result of months of hard work beforehand.