Pride Group, LLC - Chandler, Arizona

Karina H.

Have never had your company work on anything for me. But this review comes in for one of your drivers who was driving recklessly. They completing ignored THEIR yield sign and sped up to cut off the school bus I was in with about 50 students coming back from a field trip. They were so close to hitting the bus as your driver was going close to 50mph (which was speeding in that area as well).

I can’t imagine the chaos that would have happened had the bus not slowed down seeing your dummy of a driver clearly not stopping. This has been my only interaction with your company and I’m highly disappointed that someone from your company would put 50+ people’s lives in danger all for us to end up at the same red light.

This happened on Thursday, May 22nd around 1:15pm

JoAnne K.

Boy people can be harsh in these reviews! I have had great experiences with this company. What a huge task it must be to coordinate so many things at one time. Sometimes unforeseen situations come up that you have no control over. I think we all need to learn to roll with the punches sometimes. And Arizona events will be hot and we need to remember this company can't create miracles or change the weather. Being rude to disabled people is never okay. Maybe more training on how to handle different situations in that aspect may be helpful. But I also feel that the heat plays a huge factor in the lack of patience and tolerance. So when going to an event, plan for the worst heat with a lot of sweaty people and hope for the best.
And good customer service as well as being a decent a person to staff goes a long ways...food for thought. Although I'm from Minnesota where EVERYONE'S really nice 😁 so take from this what you will.

T H.

Completely disorganized. Zero ADA accommodations. Event doors opened almost an hour late. Every act was delayed and one had to shorten his set. Lost power to the front of the house due to faulty equipment. Did not have EMS readily available, delaying help when someone was in distress. Security poorly trained, watched Security tell someone they needed to leave the area and then just backed down when they were ignored. Another security guard completely oblivious while the entire crowd in front of him called for help. Security watching the show on the big screens and not the crowd. A complete comedy of errors that could have turned absolutely tragic.

Alyssa D.

Have had several experiences with this security company in the past years as a regular cosplayer in the AZ convention scene. In the past six months, Pride Group allowed hundreds of attendees to stand in freezing rain or scorching heat with only 2-3 metal detectors for events with thousands projected for attendance. This past weekend, attendees to an anime convention held in August were forced to stand in direct sunlight (many in full cosplay and many with disabilities and other health concerns) for upwards to two hours. Guests fainted, threw up, and suffered heat exhaustion and nothing was done. When guests asked to be let inside to cool down, they were turned away and forced to stand in line.

The lack of consistency is also very concerning as they seem to be too interested in declining a water bottle than to making sure no actual harmful substances are brought in. One day those substances may be confiscated and the next they’re allowed.

I’ve had horrible experiences with the employees as well, many who treated me extremely rudely. I was denied entrance to a convention with a flexible rubber prop sword while they laughed and said I could hit someone with it so it was “dangerous.” When I walked inside, dozens of other guests had even larger rubber and foam prop weapons. It was very frustrating to be treated unfairly. When I went to retrieve it after I left, I was yelled at for accidentally crossing a line when I was clearly just grabbing the prop. The employees behind my back laughed and said “that’s what you get for having it in the dirty prop pile.”

If it was a one time incident, I’d be inclined to let this go, but hundreds of other AZ convention goers, cosplayers, and guests have also experienced similar situations. I urge the Phoenix Convention Center to stop using them for their security and any other venues to heavily reconsider using this company.

Serenity V.

**EDIT TO RESPOND TO LIES** The promoter has SQUARELY placed this decision on YOU and YOUR CONTRACT. Every YEAR they try to negotiate OUT of your Food and Beverage clause. This year they were UNABLE. This is per THE PROMOTER. And the convention center staff, the ones in the office that book the shows, CONFIRMED. For the RIGHT PRICE, that is passed along in YOUR CONTRACTS, we can bring in outside food. Denying special diet needs and sealed waters is ILLEGAL. ** The Pride group that works Phoenix Fan Fusion/Comicon, is the worst. They have a no food/beverage policy that they enforce for the convention center FOR KICKBACKS. THEY PUT IT IN THEIR CONTRACTS They care more about the bottle of sealed water than the utility knife I brought in. For the $15/hr they make, they think they know better than my doctor, that has me on a special diet. None of that food is available here onsite. They forced me to throw away jello and yogurt and told me to "buy a hamburger" if I got hungry. I physically cannot chew right now. It is all THEATER. Security THEATER. To make you "feel safe", meanwhile they just pillage your bag of "contraband food" so they can get that sweet snack bar percentage back at the end of the event. Half the staff just asks you what's in your bags. The other ones ransack pulling out everything. Again, walked in with a pocket knife and utility knife. What's more dangerous, jello or a knife? Your whole outfit is a joke. And your punk staff that wants to laugh at people with disabilities- your only as good as your weakest link and your whole chain is kinked up. What do you expect hiring get highs and kids.

Lori L.

Horrible experience parking at Good Guys car show. The person taking the money screamed at everyone. Here's the problem, the signing told us to go forward for parking, wren you go forward to park, this extremely rude person screams at you, calls you names, tells you your "stupid, you missed your turn for parking". The parking they were referring to said "horse show parking" this way.... they were wrong yet they screamed at all the customers for trying to park in the wrong lot. All we were doing was following the signs. That persons behavior was 100% unacceptable. Pride security has no idea what they are doing, horrible behavior, unacceptable. I may not come back to Westworld because of this.

Kristina B.

Every year at Fan Fusion the staff is disrespectful, inconsistent, and blame all their problems on the people attending the con. Every day the rules were different, every day there was such a huge amount of miscommunication within the same same 5 feet area which resulted in getting yelled at. This company has failed to improve over the years it's with with Fan Fusion/Phoenix Convention Center and somehow gets worse every year.

Kylie T.

i cannot begin to describe my frustration with this security group. the inconsistencies from con to con and even day to day. making us throw out water from water bottles and wouldn’t let in foam swords into conventions because they’re “too hard” of foam? you guys suck and i even have it the best as a vendor.