Dedication to sales job goes into record book

Brazilian man, 100, works for 84 years at textile company that employed him in 1938

There is finding a career and then there is finding a company you stick with for so long, it breaks a world record, as Walter Orthmann of Brazil broke the world record for longest tenure at the same company, all while turning 100 years old.

Born in the small Brazilian town of Brusque on April 19, 1922, Orthmann wanted to get a job as a 15-year-old to help with his family’s financial problems, according to Guinness World Records.

Because of his strong proficiency in German, he was hired as a shipping assistant for the textile company Industrias Renaux S.A., now known as ReneauxView, on January 17, 1938.

Soon after, he was promoted to a position in sales, and later became a sales manager, a position he has held ever since.

Now, he has been with the company for over 84 years, verified on January 6, giving him the Guinness World Record for the longest career in the same company.

Labelling this record as his “proudest achievement”, Orthmann said what pushed him towards making history was focusing on the present.

“I don’t do much planning, nor care much about tomorrow. All I care about is that tomorrow will be another day in which I will wake up, get up, exercise and go to work,” he said in a new release. “You need to get busy with the present, not the past or the future. Here and now is what counts.”

Orthmann began travelling across Brazil for his job in the 1950s and said he fell in love with being on the move and establishing good relations with clients.

Last week, he celebrated his 100th birthday party with colleagues, friends and family. Guinness said Orthmann was in good health “with excellent mental clarity and memory”.

The office is his favourite place to be at, and his advice on achieving the same longevity is to work for a company where people feel motivated. “When we do what we like, we don’t see the time go by.”

You need to get busy with the present, not the past or the future

WALTER ORTHMANN, GUINNESS WORLD RECORD HOLDER