Everyone knows the typical June affair – pride month comes around and brands want to show support.. For most, they will change their profile pictures on social media to include a rainbow, and that’s their bit done for Pride Month.
But at Marketing Network Group, we wanted to shed light on the brands that go above and beyond at Pride Month. These are the brands that don’t do pride because they have to, but because they want to. These brands recognise exactly why pride matters, and incorporate it into their campaigns in ways that are clever and unique, something we value above all else when it comes to marketing.
Absolut Vodka
Absolut Vodka has a long history with Pride month, and the LGBT community as a whole. Beginning in 1981, Absolut partnered with queer magazines for advertising slots. This was a radical marketing move. At the time it was highly controversial for brands to associate with the LGBT community.
Absolut has continued to foster a relationship with the LGBT community throughout the brands’ history. They have collaborated with artists such as Andy Warhol and Keith Haring. In 1986, Haring created a vibrant and unique advertisement for Absolut in his iconic style – depicting people gathering around a stylized bottle of Absolut. It’s a bold and simple piece, and it goes beyond just harnessing a talented and independent artist for a campaign.
This early collaboration with an openly gay artist was a bold move for a company in the 1980s. In 2025, Absolut later honoured the collaboration by releasing the artwork on a bottle of their signature vodka. In 1989, the company partnered with GLAAD, further solidifying their ongoing support of the LGBT community.
However, the one product that has gone on to have a lasting impact is Absolut’s rainbow bottle. Debuting in 2008, Absolut partnered with the creator of the rainbow pride flag, Gilbert Baker for creative direction. Initially a limited release for pride month, Absolut have since made the bottle a permanent fixture in their collection, showcasing their continual support for the LGBT community.
Absolut’s continual recognition of the LGBT community goes beyond token allyship, it’s interweaving their marketing process with a social cause they truly care about and have a long-standing history with.
Skittles
Since 2016, Skittles has removed their iconic rainbow colour palette from their packaging and product to celebrate and support the LGBTQ community during pride month. Opting for a monochrome all grey approach to their sweets for Pride month, Skittles removed the colour rainbow colour palette, but kept the same distinct fruity taste in their sweets.
Launched in the US in 2020, Skittles donates 1 dollar from every pack to GLAAD, these proceeds will be donated up to 100,000 dollars to the charity. Using the slogan “Only #OneRainbow matters”, Skittles have continually shown their support for the LGBT community. Utilising an approach we have praised in the past, the removal of an iconic faucet of a brands marketing can boost brand awareness more than a traditional marketing campaign would.
Like Absolut Vodka, Skittles has maintained a close relationship with LGBT organisations and media, collaborating with Gay Times and LGBT photographers to create an art installation named “See the Rainbow” at the Royal Albert Dock in Liverpool for Pride.
Collaborating directly with LGBT artists and brand ambassadors showcases the devotion Skittles’ has to the LGBT cause. Channeling Skittles tagline – “Taste the Rainbow”, the company showcased their incorporation of the LGBT community into their company ethos, Skittles have continually gone above and beyond to weave their support of the LGBT community into their marketing campaigns.
Levis
Levi Strauss and Co, famed for their distinct denim jeans have been leading pride campaigns since 2014. However, much like Absolut, their history with the LGBT community dates back to the early 90s.
Levi’s have an incredible track record within their company for LGBT rights, being the first Fortune 500 company to provide domestic benefits to same-sex couples. This internal respect for the LGBT community lives and breathes in Levi’s marketing campaigns during pride. To Levi’s these are more than just campaigns, they embody a legacy.
As part of their 2026 campaign – “Together, We Ride”, Levi’s honoured the history and heritage of the LGBT community. Levi’s refrained from merely placing a rainbow on their products, they incorporated LGBT culture into the collection, letting the design itself make the statement.
Working with the GLBT Historical Society, an organisation which aims to preserve queer history, the design team at Levi’s wove the legacy of queer motorcycle clubs into the collection. Fusing genuine vintage imagery with Levi’s signature style, the brand showcases an acute understanding of how to make a pride campaign a celebration of queer culture, and a brand’s history..
Levi’s continues to cement themselves as a company that genuinely cares about the LGBT community, the company emphasises integrity within their marketing department, approaching Pride with a conviction unlike any other.
MAC Cosmetics
Mac Cosmetics, the Canadian make-up company has engaged directly with the LGBT community throughout their history, establishing a long-lasting relationship through their Mac AIDS fund charity.
Established in 1994, Mac created their VIVA Glam product line in order to fund the charity. Mac cosmetics donates 100% of their earnings from the line to the fund, which helps children living with HIV and AIDS worldwide.
In their first campaign, Mac advertised the VIVA Glam lipstick with the slogan “put your money where your mouth is”, a clever metaphor for the product itself and where the profits would go.
Supported by a legendary line-up of ambassadors, Viva Glam regularly collaborates with queer artists and gay icons, beginning with RuPaul in 1995. 30 years on, Mac has collaborated with Chappel Roan for their 2026 campaign.
Over 30 years, the fund has raised over 545 million dollars globally. This small section of Mac’s overall business is devoted solely to fundraising for the LGBT community and showcases their long-lasting devotion to the cause.
Pride is more than just an opportunity to build brand awareness.
At Marketing Network Group we value the brands that prioritise the community at hand, while building awareness. We see the work these brands and the agencies behind them have done, and want to do the same. As passionate supporters of the LGBT community, we are encouraging any brand to come to us this Pride Month, to help them construct a creative campaign that goes beyond token advocacy, creating solutions for your brand that are innovative, fresh, and creative. We want to help brands move beyond pinkwashing, creating campaigns that solidify genuine support for the LGBT community.
