Stereotypes about ageing persist – frail, falls, and failing mind being dominant.

MedSênior, a healthcare provider focused on preventative medicine and the concept of Aging Well, has launched a strategic intervention in the parking spaces of the Extrabom supermarket chain in Espírito Santo to challenge them. Its 60 Vive+ initiative aims to upend the stereotype of aging and spark debate around the topic.

It replaces the symbols for priority parking spaces for seniors, which typically depict a hunched-over person using a cane, replacing outdated icons with images that portray today’s seniors – surfing, cycling, traveling, and enjoying life. The initiative, that began at the Extrabom store in Jardim Camburi, will be implemented at all 37 of the chain’s locations in Espírito Santo throughout October, with the possibility of an extended period.

Rodrigo Pegoretti, the initiative’s creative director, commented, “The concept we developed is that the ‘elderly’ as society has conceived them, this stereotype, has grown old and retired. We created an intervention in the most obvious symbol of priority, the parking space, precisely to draw attention to the fact that people haven’t yet realised the revolution that ageing has undergone in Brazil. It’s a unique initiative that has everything to gain momentum and spark this new perspective in the market.”

“Society has long struggled with stereotypes that associate aging solely with limitations. For decades, the elderly were stigmatised, and priority signs for those over 60 were, and still are, in some cases, an example of this, as if aging were, in itself, synonymous with limitations. However, today’s seniors are active,” added Maycon Oliveira, marketing director at MedSênior and one of the campaign’s creators.

The initiative, which has a strategic partnership with the agency Maely Arte Publicidade Ltda (responsible for the production and installation of the stickers), has other companies interested in joining the idea. Designed to break away from traditional advertising, the stickers in the parking spaces don’t mention the names of MedSênior or Extrabom, just a QR Code inviting the public to visit the project’s website.