June 2, 2026
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Consumers Still Value Pride Month Participation — How Can Brands Do So More Authentically (and Specifically)?
The most recent research detailed by Omnisend’s Povilas Sabaliauskas indicates that corporate LGBTQ+ engagement is pulling back, with a survey of consumers dovetailing with Gravity Research data to suggest as much. Per Gravity Research, 39% of companies cut their Pride Month engagement in 2025, versus just 9% who did so in 2024 — and on the Omnisend side, 37% of American shoppers noticed this trend happening more recently, with 58%-67% of LGBTQ+ consumers globally saying the same.
“Our recent survey of 4,000 consumers across the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia shows that while companies are becoming more hesitant about their participation, consumers still closely watch how brands engage and increasingly distinguish between genuine support and performative marketing,” Sabaliauskas wrote.
Top-line data points brought to the forefront by the report included:
- About half to a little bit more than half (48%-57%) of consumers polled indicated that brand participation in Pride Month was important to them. LGBTQ+ individuals were most likely to say so (76%-85%), followed by Gen Zs (69%-75%) and millennials (66%-78%). Baby boomers were least likely to say so (28%-41%).
- Approximately one-third (32%-37%) of those polled said they expect brands to take part in Pride Month. An even greater percentage (39%-46%) stated that brands should avoid participating if they do not genuinely support LGBTQ+ rights.
- A little more than a quarter (26%-32%) of respondents indicated they’d bought a Pride-themed product in the past, generally to support the LGBTQ+ community or simply because they enjoyed the design of the item.
Authenticity as the Cornerstone of Pride Month Campaigns: But Can We Be More Specific?
Sabaliauskas also highlighted the most important factor pulled out of the findings: For Pride Month backers, authenticity was of the utmost importance.
“Year-round support, donations, and public advocacy are considered the most important signs of authenticity in brands, while participating only when it’s commercially convenient is seen as performative,” he wrote.
“The brands that come out ahead are the ones whose Pride Month activities match what they do the rest of the year. Changing your logo to rainbow colors for June without any year-round support, donations, or advocacy is exactly the kind of disconnect consumers are now accustomed to spotting instantly,” he added.
In terms of the brand actions deemed most authentic around Pride Month, those polled ranked the top contenders as follows:
- Offering year-round support to the LGBTQ+ community (25%-32%).
- Donations backing LGBTQ+ organizations (17%-22%).
- Clear public advocacy in support of said communities and organizations (15%-20%).
Conversely, the three brand actions considered to be most inauthentic were:
- Changing the logo to rainbow colors for the month of June (seen as inauthentic by 25%-32%).
- The sale of Pride-themed products with no charitable donation attached to the purchase (24%-29%).
- General participation in Pride Month only when “profitable or politically safe” (27%-31%).
“What retailers can take away from this data isn’t limited to Pride Month. Consumers are getting better at spotting when a marketing campaign is disconnected from how a company actually operates. People don’t expect every brand to make bold political statements, but what they do expect is that messaging and company behavior feel real rather than reactive,” Marty Bauer, e-commerce expert at Omnisend, said.
BrainTrust
Nicholas Morine
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Discussion Questions
What can brands do, beyond the general sentiment expressed of supporting LGBTQ+ causes year-round, to more specifically or authentically participate in the Pride Month movement?
Which brands or retailers do you see as being deemed as inauthentic in their positioning relative to Pride Month? What can they do to rectify this judgment being made by consumers?
Do you believe a contraction of engagement with Pride Month is taking place, as suggested by the data? If so, how should brands react — if at all?
Poll
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There are two dimensions to this. One is the sale of pride merchandise which, in my view, should be mostly dictated by demand. For those that don’t like pride products, rather than create a huge fuss, the proper course of action is to not engage with them or buy them. The second is general support – donations, community, and so forth – which should be at the discretion of each brand.
While there is no obligation to show support, what every brand (and frankly every American) should get behind is the principle that people are free to live their lives as they wish and to pursue happiness. That’s promised in the founding documents of the nation. It should not be remotely controversial.
Remember that Target customers who walked away after Target rejected DEI still have not returned. Retailers who embrace wholesome values like acceptance and inclusion will reap the benefits.
Brands are not simply “recalibrating” Pride participation. Many are visibly retreating because DEI has been made politically toxic, and companies are under increasing pressure, scrutiny, and attack for commitments that were once treated as basic expressions of inclusion.
The problem is that consumers notice the retreat. Pride support that only shows up when the environment is easy was never very authentic to begin with. Brands do not need performative rainbow campaigns, but they do need consistency between stated values, employee support, community investment, and public behavior.
The strongest brands will not treat Pride as a seasonal marketing decision. They will treat it as a reflection of who they are, who they serve, and whether their values hold up when the cultural climate becomes uncomfortable. That is where authenticity is either proven or lost.
“Our recent survey of 4,000 consumers across the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia shows that while companies are becoming more hesitant about their participation, consumers still closely watch how brands engage and increasingly distinguish between genuine support and performative marketing,”
I’m sorry, but I just flat out don’t believe this statement: in a world where half the population can’t find Denver on a map, or name even one of their two senators, the idea that a typical consumer is “closely watching” a company’s social conscience process(es) is beyond ludicrous. Oh sure, one can get the answers one wants with the right questions on a survey, but the gap between what people claim they do and what they actually do is nowhere clearer that here
Customers are always smarter than assumptions a brand or retailer will make. Affinity marketing doesn’t always align well with top-level branding initiatives unless there is prior evidence of meeting the customer where they’re at, and giving them what they want. And there’s real danger in tossing around platitudes, which can be seen from a mile away. If brands and retailers have put in the work with customers, it will naturally show in products, engagement, experiences – and performance.
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There are two dimensions to this. One is the sale of pride merchandise which, in my view, should be mostly dictated by demand. For those that don’t like pride products, rather than create a huge fuss, the proper course of action is to not engage with them or buy them. The second is general support – donations, community, and so forth – which should be at the discretion of each brand.
While there is no obligation to show support, what every brand (and frankly every American) should get behind is the principle that people are free to live their lives as they wish and to pursue happiness. That’s promised in the founding documents of the nation. It should not be remotely controversial.
Remember that Target customers who walked away after Target rejected DEI still have not returned. Retailers who embrace wholesome values like acceptance and inclusion will reap the benefits.
Brands are not simply “recalibrating” Pride participation. Many are visibly retreating because DEI has been made politically toxic, and companies are under increasing pressure, scrutiny, and attack for commitments that were once treated as basic expressions of inclusion.
The problem is that consumers notice the retreat. Pride support that only shows up when the environment is easy was never very authentic to begin with. Brands do not need performative rainbow campaigns, but they do need consistency between stated values, employee support, community investment, and public behavior.
The strongest brands will not treat Pride as a seasonal marketing decision. They will treat it as a reflection of who they are, who they serve, and whether their values hold up when the cultural climate becomes uncomfortable. That is where authenticity is either proven or lost.
I’m sorry, but I just flat out don’t believe this statement: in a world where half the population can’t find Denver on a map, or name even one of their two senators, the idea that a typical consumer is “closely watching” a company’s social conscience process(es) is beyond ludicrous. Oh sure, one can get the answers one wants with the right questions on a survey, but the gap between what people claim they do and what they actually do is nowhere clearer that here
Customers are always smarter than assumptions a brand or retailer will make. Affinity marketing doesn’t always align well with top-level branding initiatives unless there is prior evidence of meeting the customer where they’re at, and giving them what they want. And there’s real danger in tossing around platitudes, which can be seen from a mile away. If brands and retailers have put in the work with customers, it will naturally show in products, engagement, experiences – and performance.