Guinness World Records Awards Friendly’s Ice Cream Record for the World’s Largest Dessert Party

WILBRAHAM, MA (July 18, 2013) – Friendly’s Ice Cream, LLC, today announced it has set the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS® title for the “World’s Largest Dessert Party.” Consisting of 794 people sitting at banquet-style tables under a tented green space at Friendly’s Headquarters in Wilbraham, MA, the gathering had the iconic look and feel of an ice cream social that was reminiscent of the days when Friendly’s began crafting and serving ice cream at the height of the Great Depression.

During the attempt, guests enjoyed three varieties of Friendly’s sundae cups while attending the event for a fifteen minute period, including: the Original Fudge Sundae (vanilla ice cream, topped with fudge, whipped topping and chocolate chips); the Ice Cream Cake Sundae (vanilla ice cream, layered with chocolaty crunchies, chocolate ice cream, whipped topping and confetti); and, the Caramel Cream Sundae (vanilla ice cream, topped with caramel, whipped topping and chocolate chips). Guests attending the event were dressed in t-shirts boasting Friendly’s signature bright red color, featuring white lettering noting the words “We Did It,” as well as old-fashioned soda-fountain-style paper hats. Planned as a way to celebrate National Ice Cream Month (July), as well as Friendly’s 78th birthday, the new world record reflects Friendly’s commitment to providing delicious and quality frozen treats to ice cream fans everywhere. A GUINNESS WORLD RECORD adjudicator, Morgan Wilber, oversaw today’s event in Wilbraham and presented Friendly’s with an official certificate acknowledging the record.

“78 years ago, the Friendly’s brand was built by serving delicious, high quality ice cream, and what we did here today with GUINNESS is a direct reflection of where the company came from,” said Friendly’s President and CEO, John Maguire. “I couldn’t be more thrilled to have Friendly’s become part of the GUINNESS WORLD RECORD family, and I’m extremely proud of the fact that we created the World’s Largest Dessert Party using Friendly’s ice cream.” Friendly’s Director of Brand Engagement, Maura Tobias, oversaw the planning process for creating the World’s Largest Dessert Party, along with Michael O’Donovan, Friendly’s Vice President of Brand Innovation, who worked with the manufacturing department to ensure that enough sundae cups were prepared in advance of today’s record attempt. In addition, Friendly’s utilized fifteen Scoopologists to simultaneously deliver the ice cream sundae cups to all guests.

“Today’s extreme temperatures were a challenge for everyone, and we’re proud to certify that the hard-working team at Friendly’s has been deemed the new record holder for the World’s Largest Dessert Party” said Morgan Wilber, adjudicator from GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS.

Wilber issued a certificate acknowledging the achievement to Friendly’s President and CEO, John Maguire.

The previous record for Largest Dessert Party was set by Physician’s Mutual in Omaha, Nebraska on August 3, 2012, which consisted of 740 people enjoying three different desserts over a fifteen minute period.

About Friendly’s Ice Cream,
LLC Friendly’s Ice Cream, LLC is a vertically integrated restaurant company, with an iconic brand name, serving signature sandwiches, burgers and ice cream desserts in a friendly, family environment. Together with its broad franchisee base, the company has system-wide sales of over $550 million and distribution through over 7,500 retail locations. For 78 years, Friendly’s restaurants and dedicated service teams have delighted generations of guests. For the future, Friendly’s has plans for new food and ice cream products, enhanced buildings, and new service channels. For additional information please visit www.friendlys.com.