Garnier Canada have made a friendly entry into the history books after staff from the cosmetics firm set a new world record for the longest handshake chain.
The attempt took place last month in Cancun, Mexico at the company’s national sales meeting, the theme for which had been ‘History Will Be Made’.
Garnier decided to attempt a world record in order to excite and inspire its sales team for the new year ahead, and with any bid for the longest handshake chain record relying entirely on teamwork, it seemed the perfect record for its staff to try and set.
The minimum number of participants needed in order to set the record was 150 people, with each participant required to cross their arms in front of them and shake hands with both the person on their left and the person on their right for a full minute. Had one person broken the chain, the attempt would have been disqualified.
One aspect of the event that made the record attempt unique was that the record was a surprise – none of the participants knew they would be setting a record until the attempt was announced.
While the Garnier reps sat unsuspectingly watching a presentation, Guinness World Records Adjudicator Amanda Mochan counted the total number of seats that were filled, before an announcement was made informing staff members know that were about to help Garnier make history.
As the countdown began, independent witnesses took positions along the perimeter of the room to ensure that no one broke the chain.
For an entire minute, everyone joined together and shook. Once the sixty seconds were up, 188 participants had set a new Guinness World Records achievement.
