Check out the Rainbow Windows of Wellington
We invited retailers all over Te Whanganui-a-Tara to roll out the rainbow and decorate their windows in the spirit of Pride. 43 of them have taken up the challenge. Now you, the public - along with our panel of judges - gets to choose which windows are best.
Voting closes 5pm 21 March. The two winners - popular choice and the judges’ pick will be announced at the Pride Picnic on 22 March.
Rainbow Windows of Wellington is an excellent opportunity for you, the members of the public, to create your own Pride event by touring the participating businesses.
Are you going to go check them all out in one day? Aim to see five every lunchtime? Challenge your friends to post selfies in front of a different window each day?
Do it your way. Just do it! We love businesses who are actively supporting the queer community, so spend your money with them too if you can.
Voting for the best window is open now, but make sure you check out plenty of windows before you cast your one and only vote.
One voter will drawn at random to win:
Prize pack from Havana Coffee Works
$50 voucher from Brewtown
$333 voucher from Z Energy.
Check out all the windows!
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Amuse Snack Bar
178 Willis Street -
130 Riddiford Street
Newtown
“We decided to dress up our mannequins as different pride flags with a little note on the back of each. The mannequins will evolve over the course of the month as well sell garments from each” -
132 Riddiford Street
Newtown
“Butterfly in the sky... I can go twice as high!Book Hound presents our own Reading Rainbow. Let your imagination take flight with these LGBTQ+ authors and stories from our collection. This Pride we celebrate the artists, the art, and the non-fiction writing that keeps Queer stories alive - not forgetting that the fight for freedom continues! “
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160 Cuba Street
“Sticking to the vibe of my business and using only items in the shop, I’ve themed my window around historical methods of covert queer signalling” -
Level 1. James Smith Building
65 Cuba Street
Te Aro -
Level 2, 35 Dixon Street
Te Aro -
204B Main Road
Tawa -
31 Dixon Street
Te Aro -
160A Cuba Street
Te Aro -
10 Wigan Street
Te Aro
“At Frank Productions we're visual storytellers, and this Pride we wanted to celebrate diversity, queer film, and proudly stand alongside the rainbow community.” -
182 Vivian Street
Te Aro -
264a Cuba Street
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18 Manners Street
Te Aro -
Holland Road Yarn Company
1 Waiwhetu Road
Lower Hutt -
HUHA - Helping you Help Animals
162 Cuba Street
Te Aro“Our Pride window celebrates creativity, community, and inclusion. Origami butterflies symbolising change and growth are threaded together in different colours to represent additional Pride flags.
Visitors are invited to walk through the rainbow archway and add hand-cut paper shapes to the growing rainbow around our central window”
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118 Cuba Street
Te AroFrom the yellow brick road, drag performers on stage and lovers on ice, Iko Iko Pride is full of wonder and joy! Made from recycled materials and a revamped previous window display it is filled with the cutest colourful moments! Everyone is welcome to join our party
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108a Cuba Street
Te Aro"Pride - To have the freedom to be who you are, and to wear what you want at anytime"
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Level 3, 126 Lambton Quay
Wellington Central -
Level 1, 262 Thorndon Quay
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Shop 206, Left Bank
Te Aro -
166 Cuba St
Te Aro -
21 Ghuznee Street
Te Aro“Man's Best Friend - Willy and Raisin strutting their way into Pride month in their lively statement pieces. Mandatory Menswear, making custom outfits for you and your dog.”
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264 Cuba Street
Te Aro“In celebration of Pride Week, our shop window features mannequins wrapped in vibrant, rainbow‑coloured fabric remnants, creating a bold, joyful tribute to diversity and self‑expression.”
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Mary Potter Hospice Shop Karori
255 Karori Road
Karori“MPHS Karori is proud to be part of the Rainbow Window event this year- a time to appreciate the diversity and reaffirm our commitment to equity, dignity and culturally safe care for our Rainbow communities within our local community. We celebrate inclusion here.”
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Mary Potter Hospice Shop Newlands
3 McMillan Court Newlands
“Our Pride Month Window reflects our commitment to celebrating every identity and story, just as our hospice care compassionately supports each individual's journey." -
215 High Street
Lower Hutt -
90 Dixon Street
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209 Cuba Street
Te Aro“Meet Piper bag Princess Paperbag's very own drag royalty, reborn from recycled treasures - inspired by the bold, rule-breaking spirit of the ‘90s club kids.”
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Pride HQ
28 Blair Street
Te Aro
We’re not actually competing, but come see us anyway! -
143 Vivian Street, Te Aro, Wellington 6011
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Red Cross Adelaide Road
23 Adelaide Road
Mount Cook -
25 Courtenay Place
Te Aro -
66 Courtenay Place
Te Aro -
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2 Forresters Lane
Te Aro“A rainbow of retro tech and rescued fabric's to celebrate sustainability and Pōneke Pride”
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Shop 26, Kilbirnie Plaza
Kilbirnie
Read with Pride: our window is just a taste of all the books we have inside to support our Rainbow community. All stories are welcome here! We're pleased to have partnered with Rainbow Books for Schoolsto help get more books into schools -
1 Manners Street
Te Aro -
311 Willis Street
Te Aro”Our window mixes our shop with pride, with some flash hand drawn by our artists all over!”
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57 Willis Street
Te Aro -
87 Victoria Street
Te Aro -
129 Jackson Street
Petone -
66 Courtenay Place
Te Aro -
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148 Jackson Street
Petone
“This Pride display features fresh blooms, so we expect it’ll change over the weeks as we come up with new ideas and flowers” -
144 Cuba Street
“Fly High Darling, Rainbows Over Wellington.”
We’ve challenged retailers to roll out the rainbow all over the city with Rainbow Windows of Wellington!
We asked businesses to decorate their windows in the spirit of Pride during the Wellington Pride Festival - and 40+ retailers said yes.
Why? Rainbows send a vital message to a marginalised community: you are welcome and you belong here. And they’re also super pretty. Together we’re brightening up the whole city.
Plus, there’s prizes at stake! There’s a public vote and a judging panel.
And every business that participates will get a bag of coffee from Havana Coffee Works too!
Retail prize for each winner (public vote and judges’ pick)
A team-building prize pack consisting of
Mini golf vouchers from The Witching Hour
Axe throwing vouchers from Sweet Axe
$300 voucher valid at any Epic Hospitality business
A $333 voucher from Z Energy
Meet the Judges
Queen Olivia III
Queen Olivia III is a Wellington-based drag queen, writer, illustrator, model, and performer. Author of the bestselling The Cat Operator’s Manual, her varied career includes nationwide advertising campaigns, acting in short films and web series, publishing, libraries, and community events, blending humour, performance, and visual storytelling with mad queer joy.
Pepper Raccoon
Pepper is a local queer artist and conservation advocate, creating Aotearoa nature-themed works and donating to conservation groups. She's delighted to be a judge for Rainbow Windows and can't wait to see what businesses cook up!
Beth Brash
Beth Brash is the Festival Director for Visa Wellington On a Plate, Aotearoa New Zealand’s latest culinary festival. Beth’s deep love of food started at a young age, through years of culinary curiosity by her mother. A long-standing champion for Wellington's vibrant food and hospitality scene, Beth and her sister Alice started the blog, Eat & Greet in 2012 - interviewing local chefs, brewers, and coffee roasters. She joined the Wellington Culinary Events Trust in 2015, as manager of popular festival Beervana, before taking on the role of VWOAP Festival Director.
Beth is also the author of The Cuba Street Project, a photo, storytelling, and recipe book in one, taking a deep dive into the personalities that make up this iconic street.