Strategy June 23, 2025
Companies Hand Out Promo to the Thousands of Attendees at Philadelphia’s Juneteenth Event
The annual event featured more than 100 vendors, a 1.5-mile-long parade and a music festival.
Key Takeaways
• Cultural Celebration: The Juneteenth event in Philadelphia featured a parade, live music and community activities to honor the end of slavery in the U.S., drawing thousands to Malcolm X Park for a day of remembrance and celebration.
• Promo Outreach: Companies like NRG Energy, T-Mobile and PSA Airlines distributed branded items such as blankets, shirts, swag bags and travel pouches to engage attendees and promote their services during the celebration.
• Marketing Impact: The event’s high attendance and visibility made it a strategic opportunity for sponsors to distribute promotional products and connect with the local community, with vendors reporting significant reach and engagement.
Attendees milled between rows of vendors, walked around with steaming plates of food and danced to live music on Sunday in Malcolm X Park during Philadelphia’s ninth annual Juneteenth celebration.
The park was filled with promo products from sponsors and local organizations, which got large reach because of the event’s attendance. Last year, according to the event website, more than 130 vendors collectively earned over $500,000 in one day, reaching more than 66,000 viewers in the televised broadcast.
NRG Energy handed out Phillies and Eagles merch to attendees who signed up for the electricity and gas service at Sunday’s Juneteenth celebration in Philadelphia.
Juneteenth recognizes June 19, 1865, when federal troops arrived in Galveston, TX, to free the last remaining enslaved people. This enforcement came more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, signifying the end of slavery in the United States.
The holiday is considered the longest-running African American holiday and is celebrated each year with food, dancing, music and other activities. In 2021, former President Joe Biden signed legislation to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, marking the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted nearly 40 years earlier.
By 10 a.m. on Sunday, dozens of vendors were setting up in the park, and the smell of fresh food from food trucks was already wafting across the area. Some people sold handmade jewelry and clothing, while other booths offered games and educational information. Red, green and yellow — colors representing the pan-African flag — adorned the park.
Gary Lynch, a representative from electricity and gas provider NRG Energy, said the company sets up a table at Philadelphia’s Juneteenth event every year as a way to reach the community members they serve. When attendees stopped by and enrolled in NRG’s services, they got a choice of a Phillies or Eagles blanket or a Juneteenth shirt decorated with the pan-African flag colors and a raised fist.
“It’s an event we do every year just because it’s normally well-attended,” he said. “It’s in the community that we operate in and the people who live and come here normally can take advantage of our services.”
Representatives at a T-Mobile table handed out bubbles, hand sanitizers, lip balms and swag bags to customers who activated with the company. Their booth and promo items were decorated with the pink T-Mobile logo. Yaislyn Alicia, an associate manager at the company, said they set up in the park because of the Juneteenth event’s attendance.
Midday, crowds gathered under tents and nearby shop awnings to shield themselves from the rain and wind. Groups huddled under umbrellas along 52nd Street, waiting for the parade to pass through.
Mary Guerrero (left) and Miguel Juan gave out collapsible travel water bottles, among other promo items, at PSA Airlines’ Juneteenth booth.
The 1.5-mile-long parade, which started near The Mann Center on South Concourse Drive, ended at the park. It featured marching bands, dancers and colorful, glittery floats.
Some attendees draped themselves in the Juneteenth flag and strung up banners with the bursting star design. Ben Haith, founder of the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation, designed the flag in 1997 to represent freedom and new beginnings.
The white star in the center represents Texas, the horizontal curve signifies a fresh horizon and the bursting outline around the star is inspired by a nova – the term astronauts use to refer to a new star. The red, white and blue coloring represents the United States flag, serving as a reminder that enslaved people and their descendants are American.
Later that evening, a music festival featured local artists Ria4Reel and Dono as well as Soca star Nailah Blackman, who performed the offshoot of calypso music with Afro-Trinidadian and Indo-Trinidadian influences.
Overall, said Mary Guerrero of PSA Airlines, the Juneteenth event was well worth attending. The regional airline was handing out branded travel pouches, notebooks, cooler bags and stickers at its table.
“This is our second year sponsoring the event with Juneteenth Parade Philadelphia,” she said. “We find that it’s a great sponsorship to be part of, and we look forward to coming back next year.”