Australian Woman Sets Guinness World Record with 1,035-Piece Minions Collection

Australian Woman Sets Guinness World Record: The posh yellow cartoonish characters of the Despicable Me movies housed in the heart of an Australian are enough to confer upon Liesl Benecke a medal in the Guinness World Record.

In 15 years, from the first movie launch, she managed to collect 1,035 different Minions merch. “I remember laughing so much at the cute, little pill-shaped henchmen. They certainly made a huge impression on me,” she said.

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The collection comprises all items imaginable, including clothing, posters, plush toys, key chains, figurines, and a tattoo. “My daughter says I need another house just to store my Minions, but I love being surrounded by their beautiful, bright yellow smiles,” she told Guinness World Records. “They are in every room and on every spare wall … The back of my car is filled with Minions and when I stop at traffic lights I see people pointing and laughing at all the Minions in my car.”

Affectionately nicknamed “the Minion lady” by her coworkers, Benecke said, “I’m just a big kid at heart. Since then I have always been on the lookout for Minions everywhere I go.”

It is a global collection, acquired from as many countries: Singapore, Japan, Italy, the US, Portugal, Taiwan, and China. Her favorites include Stuart-yellow and sassy-one-eyed Minion with an attitude. “My favourite is Stuart, the sassy, one eyed Minion with attitude, and he is the one I have tattooed on my arm. So many people and kids comment on the tattoo and we start talking about our mutual love of Minions,” she said.

Giant plushy turns head

Meet Stuart, Benecke's biggest plush toy. He rides in the backseat of her car, in a neat seatbelt buckle. “Stuart is my largest plush toy and fits nicely in the back seat – it’s fun to see people’s reactions when they spot him! He wears his seatbelt so he’s safe and he enjoys getting out,” she said.

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Her passion for Minions brought her to Universal Studios in Singapore, where she celebrated her birthday among her beloved characters. “My daughters said I never looked happier on that day,” she recalled. Another one of Benecke's poignant Minion experiences was visiting Minion Land at Universal Studios in Osaka, Japan, where she teared up on entering the park. “My daughter captured the moment I cried as I entered the park,” she said.

Some people give her strange looks, while others wonder how can one draw joy from collecting Minions, but Benecke takes pride in her collection. “People laugh when I explain my obsession and they say they don’t get it or ask if my kids are the ones I collect for,” she said. “The Minions are my source of happiness and their weird and wacky ways never fail to make me laugh.”

Friends and family are also always on the lookout to help her add to her collection. “They send me pictures when they are out shopping asking ‘do you have this one?’ And if I don’t, I get them to buy it for me – you could say they are my Minion shoppers,” she shared.

"A bit of a Minion snob," says Benecke, who is somewhat selective about what she adds to her collection. “I only buy the Minions that I like the look of,” she said. “Some Minions look better than others to me.”

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