Tupperware files for bankruptcy

September 20, 2024 by
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Tupperware, the plastic storage container company that once dominated the market, recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. With the proliferation of cheaper, and frankly better, storage options, it’s a wonder the 70-year-old company made it this far before entering bankruptcy. Its sales model, once an innovative concept that empowered millions of women to earn money outside of the home, seems dated, as do some of its products.

In the company’s heyday, Tupperware parties were ubiquitous, especially in suburban and rural America. I can recall my mother and grandmother attending the parties, usually coming home with a new item. In our house, Jell-O instant pudding found a home in small footed dishes with tight-fitting lids, breakfast usually consisted of cereal eaten from a Tupperware bowl, A set of plastic canisters housed sugar, flour, and other baking ingredients, and the refrigerator always contained several pieces from a set of large nesting bowls with lids. Unique products, like the pickle keeper with a pull-up insert to make it easier to retrieve the slippery pickles, drew oohs and ahs when they debuted at a party.

However, the company didn’t keep up with consumer preferences. Most of their products were not microwave safe during the time when that appliance became a standard feature in homes. Direct sales and the multi-level-marketing model declined in general, hitting the company hard because it did not offer products in retail stores until 2022, when Tupperware partnered with Target for a line of storage containers. As Eater’s Amy McCarthy notes, the once unique and clever offerings became downright strange in recent years.

The company faces huge obstacles to reorganization and a return to profitability. The Chapter 11 filing offers a glimpse of hope because it is not a liquidation bankruptcy, but unless Tupperware can revitalize its offerings and make products that can compete with the leaders in the market such as Rubbermaid, it will be difficult for them to weather this storm.

Category: Antipasto

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2 Comments

  • MaineDruid  on  September 21, 2024

    I’ve pondered the demise of Tupperware quite a bit over the past week. The comments about its adherence to the once-innovative business model and the products’ microwave incompatibility are spot on. Among other issues that occurred to me is the company’s apparent belief that kitchenware is a fashion item. Something that spends most of its existence in a dark cupboard just doesn’t need to be updated every year. Take a look at the Tupperware offerings on eBay. The colors would embarrass a clown. Even if my leftover dishes are rarely seen, I don’t want my (I think) tasteful color scheme punctuated by flashes of fuchsia or a soupçon of celadon.

    And, though this may be minor, the fact that the company allowed its name to be used generically (instead of doing as Xerox did, constantly admonishing us for using “xerox” for any brand of copy machine) devalued it. I don’t know how often I’ve given someone food in an inexpensive container and been asked if I want my “tupperware” back.

    I hope Tupperware can come out of this intact, renewed, and viable. I am still using pieces that were purchased in the 60s (though not necessarily for food) and have a real appreciation for its durability and imperviousness to pantry pests–just not the bizarre colors!

  • dgiles  on  September 22, 2024

    I sold Tupperware for a short time in the 70s, then worked for a distributor for several years. At that time, Tupperware was unique, innovative and high quality. Even then, though, it was finicky — the seals had to be treated a certain way, no dishwasher, no microwave, etc. Later, when Rubbermaid introduced its line, I knew Tupperware would eventually be doomed. It was always expensive, but when there was a lower priced alternative, it seemed that much more expensive. It’s too bad, because it was a great product.

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