Stigma Still Plagues Pride Festival Sponsorship Efforts

None by KCPW

(KCPW News) The Utah Pride Festival is expected to attract more than 20-thousand people to downtown Salt Lake City this weekend. But despite steady growth in attendance, Utah Pride Center director Valerie Larabee says corporate sponsorship has not increased:

"We have a family of sponsors that we've had for the last few years that have rejoined us," says Larabee.

Regular Pride Festival sponsors include The B.W. Bastian Foundation and Budweiser. Despite the festival's growing popularity, Larabee says a stigma still plagues potential funders. She has discovered the best way to tap corporate pockets is from within:

"There are employees within companies that go to their bosses and say 'We would like you to sponsor this on behalf of your GLBT employees.'" says Larabee. "And that is always successful."

Even without additional sponsorship, Larabee says this year's Pride Festival has taken considerable risks. The event will be three days, instead of two, and will feature high-profile music talent like Sheena Easton and En Vogue. Larabee says the additional costs will be covered in part by increased ticket prices for those performances. Even still, she projects this year's festival to raise record profits for the Utah Pride Center. Previous years' profits averaged 15-thousand dollars.

Details about the festival are online at www.utahpride.org.

Email to a friendPosted in KCPW Newsroom. Copyright 2008 KCPW