When the world woke up to the news this week that Tupperware had filed for bankruptcy in the US a wave of nostalgia crossed the nation.
The move has been attributed to dwindling demand and the resulting financial meltdown.
The company enjoyed a brief boost in sales during the pandemic as people ate from home more and needed to put those leftovers somewhere. However, Tupperware reported a fall in sales for six consecutive quarters since the third quarter of 2021.
Tupperware sounded the alarm last year with a debt restructuring, but it appears it wasn’t enough to save this iconic brand. It was also carrying $700 million in debt, which doesn’t help.
So what happened? Well, the world has changed since Tupperware first hit our pantry shelves.
But let’s wind it back. Tupperware broke a few firsts. The company began in 1946 as an early adopter of plastic for food containers. It also patented the ‘burp’ seal that kept food for longer and introduced a ‘party plan’ for direct sales. It would be a rare woman of a certain age in Australia who did not take part in a Tupperware party at least once over the years.
Some classics lasted generations, including the child’s toy pictured above. I bought one for my kids. Did you?
And all these things cruised along very well for several decades, but then modern life caught up with Tupperware.
First up, party plan sales became a bit naff. Women no longer had the time or interest to sit around discussing plastic food containers.
There is also much more awareness about the unviability of multi-level marketing (MLM). It’s not just selling the products, a big part of the MLM business model is salespeople signing up other hosts. That’s great for the person at the top of the tree, but someone just starting out will probably not see the rewards as the amount of people willing to sign up runs out.
According to Wikipedia, statistics released by Tupperware in 2018 showed that 94 per cent of its active distributors remained on the lowest level of the pyramid, with average gross earnings of $653.
Let’s face it, would you like to host party plans in this day and age? The answer is probably no. The last time I went to a Tupperware party – probably more than two decades ago – the host tried to sign us all up. It was cringy.
Tupperware tried to counter this by opening their own retail outlets, and embracing telemarketing selling, but maybe that ship had sailed.
Another nail in the coffin was simply the sheer number of competitors. You can buy plastic containers at the supermarket, discount shops or department stores. If you put your mind to it, it may take you five minutes, tops, to buy what you need. You don’t need to go to a friend’s house, sipping tepid wine and sit around for an hour gazing longingly at food receptacles.
And relative to what you can buy at the supermarket or wherever you source your plastic containers, Tupperware is expensive. A quick look through the online store and the prices are at a “tell them they’re dreaming” price point.
A single plastic canister for $32? A set of four for $120? I’m never paying that in a million years.
Frankly, I’m surprised they have lasted this long.
Do you have Tupperware at home? How long has it been since you have bought a piece? Why not share your experience in the comments section below?
Also read: Should I put my condiments in the fridge after opening them?
I’m not surprised. They stopped the original replace with new for life guarantee. Had some great product that you can’t buy off the shelf eg. very large cake containers, the beetroot container, both I still have. But not worth buying at the expensive price without the life guarantee.
I haven’t bought it for years and was frankly shocked at the prices when I did some research for this story.