Primark faces backlash as no profits from Pride t-shirts donated to LGBT+ causes

Illustrated rainbow pride flag on a pink background.

Retail giant Primark has faced backlash after it was revealed that no profits from their Pride themed clothing would be donated to LGBT+ organisations.

The clothing store admitted that no profits from its rainbow coloured clothing that was released ahead of Pride celebrations in cities across the UK would be donated.

In Manchester, t-shirts with a rainbow print and the city name were and the slogan “Manchester is Proud” were put in window displays.

One customer, Robin Grace, sent an email to the company to enquire whether or not proceeds would be going towards LGBT+ charities.

In response, the company sent a statement to Grace in which they said they take LGBT+ issues “very seriously” but that they would not be making any donations.

The retailer noted that they are a party of Stonewall’s Global Diversity Champions programme.

The statement read: “As a large retailer we have an extensive charity programme, both at a national and local level, donating to a variety of charities throughout the year, across all the markets in which we operate.

“We constantly review our preferred charities and are open to suggestions.


“In this instance I can confirm we are not making a donation linked to the sales from the Pride t-shirt range.”

Earlier this year, Apple launched a red iPhone “to fight AIDS”, however, the company failed to say how much money from the proceeds would be going to charity.

The tech giant announced the special edition versions of iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, as part of a partnership with (RED), to raise money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS.

The phone, which went on sale worldwide on March 24, will build on Apple’s existing work with (RED), which has to date raised $130 million for the Global Fund.

But HIV activists raised questions about how much money will actually be contributed from the phone’s hefty £799/$799 price tag.

Apple specifies that a “contribution” from the price of each phone will go to (RED).

PinkNews asked both Apple and (RED) to clarify how much Apple’s contribution will be from the sale of each phone. Apple declined to comment, pointing a release from (RED) that pegged the total to-date contributions from previous Apple campaigns at $130 million.