Yes, CVS actually stands for something — and most people have no clue after 60 years
You learn something new every day, even about one of the largest drugstores in America.
A viral clip on social media left many confused, and some curious, when a TikToker revealed the actual name of the renowned drugstore CVS.
“I got this dry mouth spray from “Consumer Value Stores, and the experience of using it is kind of, like, someone who’s in the middle of chewing gum is spitting into your mouth,” the TikToker named Nisa said.
It didn’t take long for viewers to rush to the comments about Nisa using the store’s full-on “government name.”
“And today was the day I found out what CVS actually stood for…,” one replier says.
Another user who claimed they previously worked at CVS admitted in the comments to not knowing what the drugstore chain’s acronym stood for.
“Wait I worked at CVS and I had no idea it was actually an acronym,” the clueless ex-CVS worker said.
The highlight of the comment section might’ve been the repliers who got a kick out of Nisa using the actual “government name.”
“Calling out CVS'[s] gov name has to be a war crime,” a replier joked.
“I know CVS is blushing at you calling its full name,” another user who knew what store Nisa was referring to said.
“You say that every time like that? 😂😂😂. Oh, I’m going to the consumer value store. Ain’t no way!” one person joked.
The Massachusetts-born drugstore first opened as “Consumer Value Stores” in 1963 at a location in Lowell, according to the chain’s official site.
The ex-CEO, Tom Ryan, ultimately changed the store’s name to the acronym CVS a year after opening.
As of 2023, there are 9,589 CVS Pharmacy locations in the US — with the most number of stores planted in California.
The drugstore chain stands as the largest in the country.
