Festival Exhibitor Updates

Last updated March 27, 2024

Festival Layout and Booths

Exhibitor Booths are generally setup as two across (20’) and six in a row (60’). Festival Exhibitor booths are 10'x10' and grouped together under one canopy. There is no infrastructure or dividers for booths. If you have a canopy that is 10x10 or smaller it will fit under the larger canopy. Exhibitors are welcome to bring tarps, or other large tapestry to hang. It's a good idea to have rope, bungees, or zip ties on hand. Below are some pictures from previous years for examples of the layout of booths and what to expect when you arrive.

If you are unsure of which booth you are in or where you are located please refer to the Exhibitor Sitemap. Electricity is available as an add-on for your booth area. Please be kind and only use an electrical connection if you’ve ordered one. Each booth is provided with a minimum of one 8ft table and 2 folding chairs. Corner booths receive 2 - 8ft tables. Extra tables and chairs are available for a small fee. Add-on for electricity, chairs, and tables can be submitted through EventHub by June 1st to guarantee service.

FAQS from Festival Exhibitors

How do people helping with my booth gain entry?

If trying to access the festival ground before the festival opens, there may be limited gates by which you can access the festival grounds. Please listen to security and event staff or volunteers at the gate. Exhibitors will receive information on load-in for Saturday morning. If you are loading in supplies or materials on Sunday morning, in addition to Saturday morning, please let Karianne know. With the parade there are special times for load-in on Sunday.

During festival hours, people that are staffing your booths will need to go through one of the festival gates and security. If lines to gain entry to the festival are long, please have your booth volunteers/staff go to the front of the line and identify themselves and the booth they are working for to gain entry. There is a suggested donation of $10 at the gate, but no one is required to donate to gain entrance to the festival.

There are three entrances to the festival. The Ash Street entrance on the north end of the festival, the Pine Street entrance, and towards the south is the Harvey Milk Street entrance. Please have everyone who will be working/volunteering at the festival read the Portland Pride FAQs. It provides additional information on parking and what can be brought into the festival.

Can we bring our own food and drinks?

Yes! You can bring your own snacks, food, and non-alcoholic beverages. Due to OLCC regulations, there are no open beverages allowed to be brought in to the festival grounds. Water bottles and open containers must be emptied before entering the festival grounds, see our Portland Pride FAQs. Please no alcoholic beverages or cannabis edibles, these are regulated by the OLCC and not allowed to be brought into the festival.

What can we do at our booth?

Festival exhibitors are able to sell products and services, accept and collect donations, hand out unopened pre-packaged samples, and offer water for free. Many booths give away swag or plan activities to engage festival goers. There is no cannabis or alcohol permitted at exhibitor booths. For a full list please refer to the Festival Exhibitor Rules and Regulations. All activities must be contained within your 10x1o booth footprints.

Are tables and chairs included?

Each booth receives two chairs. Corner booths received two 8’ tables, and inline booths receive one 8’ table. You are allowed to bring your own tables, chairs, booth setup. If you do not need your tables or chairs please let Karianne or volunteers at the Info Booth know and we can have them removed.

Is my booth covered?

Booths are covered by large canopies. If you have a 10x10 tent/pop up canopy you want to use to hang things from, those may fit under the large canopies.

Can I use a branded tent?

Booths are covered by large canopies. There is no space for exhibitors to setup stand alone tents. Branded tents that are 10x10 or smaller may fit under the larger canopy and allow for hanging of backdrops or banners.

Can we leave our booths unattended during festival hours?

Booths must be staffed and open Saturday, July 20th from 12:00PM - 8:00PM and Sunday, July 21st from 11:30AM - 6:00PM.

When is load out?

Early load out is not allowed. Festival staff and security will start closing gates to the festival at 8:00 PM on Saturday and 6:00 PM on Sunday. One gate will remain open until the last festival attendee has left the festival grounds. At this time all gates will close and an OLCC sweep will be conducted by festival staff. Once this is complete gates will reopen and festival exhibitors will be able to load out. This can take as much as 45-60 minutes so please take this into account when scheduling your volunteers and booth staff.

Exhibitor Booth Load-in Information

Load-in for festival exhibitors is on the morning of Saturday, July 20th between 8AM and 11AM along Naito Parkway.

• Exhibitors will be assigned a time to arrive and cross streets, for where to pull up at the curb on Naito Parkway. This helps stagger our 150+ exhibitors who are loading in that morning. You will receive your arrival time and location in late June.

• When you arrive please check in with Pride Northwest personnel.

• DO NOT pull in under the Morrison Bridge. There is NO unloading under the Morrison Bridge.

• 15-min parking is permitted along SW Naito Parkway. You must pull up into the bike lane area and park at the curb on SW Naito Parkway.

• There is no festival parking, please see the FAQs page for more information on parking downtown.

• All directions by Pride Northwest personnel must be followed.

Vehicles parked on SW Naito Pkwy after 11:00AM and/or beyond the permitted 15 minutes are subject to tow. Load in after 11AM must be approved by Pride Northwest.

There is NO load-in allowed after 11:00 am on Saturday, July 20th
If you are late loading in, you will need to get permission before entering the festival. 

The Information Booth is located on the west side of the festival, next to the Battleship Oregon Memorial, if you have any questions upon your arrival please come and see us.

If you plan on loading out on Saturday night and loading in on Sunday morning please email Karianne at khorton@pridenw.org so we be sure to connect with you about load in on Sunday morning, which can be affected by the parade and road closures.

Exhibitor Booth Load-out Information

The festival closes at 8:00 PM on Saturday, July 20th and 6:00 PM on Sunday, July 21st. Below is the step by step process for load out.

1. Festival Gates Close - Festival Attendees are asked to leave through the SW Pine St gate - exhibitors are not cleared to leave at this time

2. OLCC Sweep of festival grounds - Festival staff will conduct an OLCC sweep of the grounds

3. Gates reopen and approval to load out is given by Pride Northwest volunteers and Festival Staff.

This process can take as much as 45-60 minutes following the end of the festival. When scheduling booth coverage please allow for at least an extra hour following the end of the festival for load out on both Saturday and Sunday.

Security

Security is present overnight, but vendors are responsible for securing their belongings. We are not responsible for items left unattended. Pride Northwest works with our security team and the City of Portland and has a robust safety plan in place. In the event there are any safety concerns at or near the festival please alert a security person or a Pride Northwest staff or volunteer. This ensures the information gets to our security team so we can handle any issues if they arise. It is not uncommon for there to be protesters outside the festival, we ask that folks do not engage with them. 

Security is a top priority for Portland Pride. While we are unable to share many specifics about the details of our security plan, we work closely with local law enforcement, emergency response folks, and private security for the event. We also engage local peacekeeping and de-escalation teams to help ensure that direct confrontation with community members is minimized and/or eliminated. Our community is most safe when we are together in large numbers, and work in collaboration to keep each other from harm.