SAVE THE QUEER BAR Party | Ruby Deluxe needs your help!

UPDATE: As of December 14, we have raised $8472 through this link and cash brought to our Save the Queer Bar Party on Friday, Dec. 13. Thank you thank you thank you thank you to everyone who came out and donated! And thank you to our incredible performers!

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Ruby Deluxe is in trouble. Rent is due & we need your help.

2025 will mark 10 years since Ruby Deluxe opened its doors. 

10 years of prioritizing queer and trans folks.

10 years of creating space for queer art and creativity. 

10 years of good times and fun hangs. 

But Ruby Deluxe is in big trouble...

This season is always financially tough but it’s hit us especially hard this year. 

The reality is rent is steep and bills are ever increasing and the capitalist society we live in is not built for businesses that prioritize people and ethical operations. We do our best to price accessibly for queer and medium to low income folks but the cost of running a business in Raleigh is made for upper income folks. 

Because of this we’re kept financially upside down most of the year and it's really caught up with us recently.

We desperately want to keep this space alive for our community especially in these ever increasingly scary times but we need help. 

How can you help?

1. Spread the word! Spread it far and wide! Send this link and the link to our Patreon (Link coming soon) to your friends, your family, neighbors, the cute enby you locked eyes with at the last Glitter Hour…

2. Donate what you are able through this link. 

3. Bless us with the gift of your performance! If you’re interested in donating your talents to our Save the Queer Bar Party, dm us. All tickets sales, tips & donations from the event will go to keeping our doors open.

4. Join us on Saturday, Dec. 13 at our Save the Queer Bar Party. Have some bevvies, throw some dollar bills, make some memories!

5. Become a contributor to our Patreon (Link coming soon). 

Making ends meet is never easy for us. When you prioritize those that society does not, you are rarely rewarded financially but those are the priorities that make us who we are. And we understand that every night isn’t a bar night but a little monthly subsidy will help us stay around for the nights that are.

Our pledge to you...

1. Financial transparency.

The money raised through our Save the Queer Bar Party will all be used to pay staff & performers, pay rent and cover operating costs. We will do our best to share how much and where the money raised is used.

2. Keep prioritizing our community! 

Love for our community and creativity is what drives us to do this every day. It’s the reason we’re asking for help and we promise that isn’t going to change. 

Q&A

Where will the funds raised go?

On the weekend after Halloween Nov. 1-2, our building’s sewer line collapsed and Ruby Deluxe had to close. The responsibility of repair was the city’s. Our landlord offered us no financial leniency other than a little extra time which set us on a financial spiral. The large portion of the money raised covers the sales and some of the staff’s wages lost during that time.

And truthfully, we are trying to figure out how to operate a queer bar in 2024. Capitalism is not built for the success of small businesses. With a quick google search, you can see it has become quite difficult to keep music venues and queer bars open in 2024. The remainder of the $10,000 will help catch up on rent and bills we have fallen behind on during the slow season. 

How much of the money raised will go to ownership?

ZERO. No money from this will go to the ownership of all 3 bars.

What about the Patreon?

We’ve taken a note from our peers across the country. Patreon offers us a way to incentivize membership and patronage to all three of the bars under the Queer Raleigh umbrella. Each venue has its own vibe and story but at the heart of each one is the prioritization of queer and trans folks. While The Night Rider and The Wicked Witch are doing slightly better than Ruby Deluxe, they still need enough help to be included on the Patreon. Keep an eye out for how we implement Patreon. If you would like to become a member, click here.

Is this the first time you’ve asked for help?

No, we asked for help once before during the height of the pandemic when we were closed by mandate. We’ve been open since 2015.