Walgreens pharmacy launches ad campaign with a positive spin for people living with HIV

Illustrated rainbow pride flag on a white background.

Pharmacy giant Walgreens has released a new campaign featuring HIV-positive genuine customers.

The ads feature seven HIV-positive customers of the brand, which shine a positive light on living with HIV.

Walgreens pharmacy launches ad campaign with a positive spin for people living with HIV

They are featured in print magazines, such as one with customer Gregg, which has the tagline “Three decades positive, one positive outlook.”

The 58-year-old represents many people who are living with HIV, says Marketing Manager Karyn Lee.

She says: “Gregg is our sage leader, 30-plus years in [San Francisco] in the Castro, and he does a lot of work with survivors. It’s important for you to see that there are people who are still talking about it and have been here 30-plus years.”

The campaign also features a number of interactive video interviews with all of the customers.

The videos map out different stages going from diagnosis through to the future.

Joshua, another of the customers is featured with his mother who says she was ashamed of her son for his diagnosis.

He says: “To not have my family or their support there … I had to dig deeper into who I was, who I wanted to be, and if I wanted to live to see that.”

And in the emotional moment, his mum adds: “I’m right there a hundred percent.”

Walgreens pharmacy launches ad campaign with a positive spin for people living with HIV

Walgreens’ Lee talks of one of the staff members featured in the ads, Andrew, saying he “is one of our many, many (a couple thousand) staff who are specially trained to offer services in a standalone or everyday Walgreens store that you may not think is a specialised location.”

The company is the second biggest pharmacy chain in the US.

Anti-gay activist Linda Harvey last year complained there’s nowhere left for her to shop anymore, because few major businesses oppose LGBT equality, noting Walgreens’ commitments to equality.

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