On Guinness World Records Day, November 14th, Victoria’s iconic Russell Books gained even more recognition as it set a brand new Guinness World Record; “The Tallest Tower of Guinness Book of Records”
The Russell Books team of builders began working in the early afternoon stacking and locking the Guinness Book of Records into a stable base for the growing tower at the new Russell Books location (opposite the original location on Fort Street in downtown Victoria). By 4pm, the doors were opened for a soft opening of the new 18,000 sq ft location, inviting the community and media to witness history in the making.
The Tower Rises 
Reaching the second floor 
Still Rising 
Nearly There! 
Official Measurements
The community had a vested interest, since they had been invited to help with this record by donating copies of Guinness Books of Records, in exchange for a store credit. The people browsing and mingling in the open house feeling on the new store’s street level contrast with the tension and stress on the lower floor as the team continued to stack books. Once the tower reached the mezzanine, getting closer to the Guinness Record designated 6m mark, all eyes turned to watch. Nervous energy took over as the tower occasionally wobbled, causing the builders to stabilize or adjust the books. The tower was just a few books away from topping out, then after a tease of removing books to adjust again. Then after 5.5 hours, the final editions were added to the tower, breaking the 6m mark to great applause.
Guinness World Record adjudicator Phillip Robertson was on hand from New York to verify the record followed the strict guidelines set by the organization for this brand new category. Once the tower was confirmed to be freestanding for a minimum of 10 seconds, the record was theirs. Robertson presented the Guinness World Record Certificate to owner Andrea Minter and the Russell Books team to hang proudly in the new store. For safety reasons the tower of 1000+ books was disassembled but the memory will live on for all who witnessed it, and donated books to complete the daunting task.