Supporting AIDS service organizations has long been an important priority of Virgin Megastores. Although the commitment is corporate-wide, individual stores around the country plan, sponsor, and host events tailored to the needs of their local communities. In San Francisco, as in the rest of the country, people of color represent an increasingly disproportionate share of new AIDS cases, so the San Francisco Virgin Megastore teamed up with the National Task Force on AIDS Prevention (NTFAP) and local disc jockeys to sponsor a dance event to raise money primarily to support AIDS prevention efforts in communities of color.
The event, christened “Spin It! DJs Fighting for a Cure,” allowed recording artists, club promoters, and their audience the opportunity to demonstrate their support in the ongoing battle against HIV. Virgin Megastore opened its flagship downtown store to promote the event. Local DJs provided the music, and the NTFAP coordinated volunteers who handed out educational materials about HIV/AIDS. The event attracted 1,500 revelers and generated positive local press coverage for HIV/AIDS prevention efforts.
“Our goal was to use the store as a vehicle to disseminate information and support HIV prevention in communities of color,” explained Christopher Sherman, Virgin’s marketing assistant for Northern California.
