Key Takeaways

Grindr is taking its global marketing strategy on the road with its 2nd annual Grindr Rides Again Pride Tour for 2025 Pride. 

With stops along the east coast of the U.S. and throughout Europe, the bus tour is part of Grindr’s mission to spread positive brand engagement — and, of course, pride — on a global scale. Fans can follow the “big bright bus that you literally could not miss even if you tried” from D.C. to Lisbon to Ft. Lauderdale to Paris. 

Grindr hopes to promote positive brand engagement by loading the bus with “full service portrait photography studios, local drag queens, bangin DJs, highway hunks, punny bumper stickers, free swag, Grindr Xtra + Unlimited giveaways, and so much more.”

But the bus tour isn’t only a fun way to gain followers on social media. It’s part of Grindr’s larger goals to make a global impact, shed its “hookups-only” image, and create real, IRL connections for people in the LGBTQ+ community. 

“This is Grindr stepping out of the app and into real life — bringing the Gayborhood straight to your block,” according to the site. 

Grindr Hits the Streets to Bring Pride — and People — Together

By reaching out to the varied needs and desires of its diverse community, Grindr is building on its 26% Q1 revenue growth. This unconventional marketing strategy continues Grindr’s attempts to, as the company’s Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing and Communications, Tristan Pineiro, put it, “connect the community” — especially offline. 

“We’re on a path to de-stigmatize Grindr and to ensure that we’re in culture and in conversation as the real connector of the community, which is what we’ve actually become,” he said. 

In an increasingly unpredictable political environment, in-person connections are more important than ever for the LGBTQ+ community. Bringing the community together for fun IRL bonding experiences — with a bright yellow, unapologetically gay Grindr bus in tow — is brand activism at its finest, Pineiro explained. 

“By us being proud about who we are, putting positive stories out there, celebrating our community, creating content that has our community front and center as the hero, [goes] a long way to challeng[ing] [stigmatized] perceptions,” he said.

Drag Queen Scarlett Strauss, who is set to host the Provincetown, MA leg of the tour, highlighted how the bus tour facilitates in-person connections. “I’m looking forward to the eye contact, the dance-offs, the flirtations with people way out of my league — and most importantly, the real connections that remind us why Pride exists.” 

The Bus is a Means of Connection Everywhere, From NYC to London  

This year, Grindr’s bold marketing strategy is hitting the road in Europe, too, for its Grindr Rides Europe Tour. Its first stop was Mighty Hoopla in London on May 30, where the company didn’t only bring a bus, but an entire festival area called — what else? — “The Gaybourhood.” 

Each of Grindr’s four themed festival stages appealed to a different kind of Grindr user, from a gender-inclusive cabaret to a wild west-style shindig to a lesbian club. 

Grindr is not only expanding its marketing outreach to diverse demos, but easing the type of IRL connections that today’s daters crave. 

And by encouraging attendees to use Grindr’s “Right Now” feature, the app is striking a balance between authentic romance and the fun hookup culture it’s already known for. 

 “We couldn’t be happier to kick off our Grindr Rides Europe Tour by co-creating our very own Gaybourhood experience,” Pineiro said. “Mighty Hoopla is an unapologetic, joyous celebration of our community and all things camp, queer, and gay.” 

In other words, Mighty Hoopla fits right in with Grindr’s ultimate goal: To generate global enthusiasm for Grindr that lasts long after Pride Month has ended.