Sponsorship open for 2026
To celebrate the launch of sponsorship for 2026 and thank our 2025 sponsors, we hosted our annual Sponsorship event in Exeter a little while ago.
Read on further below to learn how you can get involved and sponsor Pride 2026!
An evening of nibbles, bubbles, and pure positivity filled Hotel Du Vin as Exeter Pride officially launched its sponsorship campaign for 2026. The event brought together existing sponsors, partners, and prospective supporters to celebrate the success of the 2025 event, including the biggest Pride march through Exeter’s city centre to date.
The evening was both a thank you and a rallying point: a chance to reflect on what can be achieved when the business community and local organisations stand shoulder to shoulder with Exeter Pride in celebrating inclusion, love, and solidarity. Exeter Pride Chair, Russell Back, addressed guests, reflecting on the remarkable success of the 2025 event and the crucial role local business support plays in keeping Pride alive. “Exeter Pride doesn’t happen by magic,” he said. “It happens because our community believes in it, and our business partners make it possible.”
In a year when many local and national Pride events have faced cancellations or uncertainty due to financial pressures and shifting political climates, Exeter Pride’s success stands as a testament to resilience, collaboration, and shared purpose. The environment for LGBTQ+ events has become increasingly challenging, with funding cuts, rising costs, and polarised rhetoric threatening spaces that celebrate equality. Yet Exeter Pride continues to shine — thanks to the dedication of local sponsors and the strength of our community values: Celebration, Protest, Respect, Inclusion, Education, and Collaboration.
Guests enjoyed a relaxed evening of connection, conversation, and gratitude, fuelled by fabulous canapés, bubbles, and cocktails courtesy of Hotel Du Vin. Exeter Pride also shared exciting updates on its sponsorship programme for 2026, offering a wide range of opportunities for businesses of all sizes to get involved.
Following feedback from current sponsors, Exeter Pride has refined and expanded its sponsorship packages to ensure genuine value, visibility, and community impact. This year, feedback was also gathered from across the community, including attendees, volunteers, performers, and local businesses, highlighting just how significant Exeter Pride is for the city.
In 2025, the event attracted around 9,000 attendees, with 4,000 participants in the march, and was estimated to have added tens of thousands of pounds to the local economy. Looking ahead, Russell offered a glimpse of what’s to come in 2026, with plans already in motion for an even bigger and bolder Pride celebration.
The focus for next year will include expanding the march, amplifying youth voices, and improving accessibility to ensure that every member of the community can take part and feel welcome. As the night drew to a close, one message was clear: Pride is not just a parade. It’s our community coming together, a celebration and a protest, ensuring that the LGBTQ+ community feel seen, heard, and loved in their own streets.
“It was a delight to catch up with our sponsors and partners and to hear how much they enjoyed attending Exeter Pride in May.
It was heartwarming to say the least, to hear that they were pleased to be a part of Exeter Pride and were looking forward to being a partner or sponsor again next year.
We really appreciate such amazing support from the business community, it makes such a difference, all donations gratefully received, large or small.”
Sponsorship Tiers
To streamline the process of financially supporting Exeter Pride’s yearly event, we offer sponsorship packages catering all business sizes and affordability.
For all queries about sponsorship, please email us.
Partnership
For organisations with a bigger piggy bank to share, we welcome conversations for bespoke partnerships, which can bring you additional opportunities and perks across our events. Simply email us to discuss a package for you.
Marketplace Stalls
We’re excited to continue offering lots of space for pitches across Northernhay Gardens. Rougemont Gardens will also be available for pitch spaces, with a focus on youth-oriented opportunities, community groups and organisations.
For all queries about our marketplace and how to apply for a pitch, please email us.
All applications for sponsorships and marketplace stalls will be reviewed by the committee on a monthly basis to ensure they align with our updated ethical sponsorship policy and work to promote our mission and values for our LGBTQ+ community. Please allow us time to carry out these processes in your application.
Thank you to 2025’s sponsors & partners:
From raffles, fashion shows, bingo nights, bespoke products and quizzes, we are up for all types of fundraising and any new ideas. We are always looking for new partners and sponsors and if you have other ideas on how your business can support Exeter Pride, we would love to hear from you. If you have any queries or would like to get involved with Exeter Pride, please get in touch!