Tupperware Files For Chapter 11 As Famous Sales Parties Fall Flat

Perhaps the retail baton really is being passed. Tupperware, one of the brands that revolutionized U.S. retailing, is entering Chapter 11.

Tupperware, a genuine icon in a world that uses the phrase far too often, and famed for its plastic food storage containers, most commonly at Tupperware parties, announced this week that it had filed for bankruptcy after years of decline.

In a statement Tuesday, Tupperware said that it will seek court approval to continue operating during the proceedings and “remains focused on providing its customers with its award-winning, innovative products through Tupperware sales consultants, retail partners and online.”

The company will also seek court approval to facilitate a sale process for the business.

Following the appointment of a new management team within the last year, Tupperware said that it had implemented a strategic plan to modernize its operations, bolster its omni-channel capabilities and drive efficiencies for growth, with which it said it had made “significant progress”.

"Whether you are a dedicated member of our Tupperware team, sell, cook with, or simply love our Tupperware products, you are a part of our Tupperware family. We plan to continue serving our valued customers with the high-quality products they love and trust throughout this process," said Laurie Ann Goldman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Tupperware.

"Over the last several years, the company's financial position has been severely impacted by the challenging macroeconomic environment. As a result, we explored numerous strategic options and determined this is the best path forward. This process is meant to provide us with essential flexibility as we pursue strategic alternatives to support our transformation into a digital-first, technology-led company better positioned to serve our stakeholders," added Goldman.

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Tupperware Parties

Tupperware has historically been sold to consumers only through direct sales, most famously at Tupperware parties, and it only began selling in general merchandise chain Target in 2022.

Once a household name, Tupperware became less popular with younger consumers in recent years and despite a pandemic sales bounce, the company first flagged its financial issues in April 2023 as a regulatory filing revealed that it was in danger of going out of business. The Florida-based company said at the time that without more capital it would no longer be able to fund its operations.

Yet Tupperware was brought back from the brink four months later, when it secured a deal with its creditors that enabled it to reduce its interest payment obligations by $150 million. At the same time it secured $21 million in new finance, plus an extension on the deadline for paying back about $348 million in debt and a reduction in that debt of around $55 million.

Yet the fresh financing only put off the inevitable and Tupperware shuttered its sole U.S. factory in South Carolina earlier this year, while its shares have sunk by 75% in the year to date and last traded at just 51 cents. That compares with a peak of nearly $37 per share in late 2020, as it received a huge pandemic boost.

Avon Global In Chapter 11

Tupperware’s fate comes just a month after another iconic 1960s brand, Avon.

While the U.S. and rest of the world operations separated in 2016 - with the Avon brand in North America now owned by South Korean based LG Household & Health Care - the owner of the beauty brand in the U.K., Europe and Latin America has filed for bankruptcy.

It has tried to off-load more than $1 billion of debt, including millions of dollars in liabilities linked to lawsuits alleging that talc in its products caused cancer, but called time last month.

Avon Products Inc. (API), a subsidiary of Brazil’s Natura which bought Avon’s non-North American trading businesses in 2020, has filed for Chapter 11 and said that the process would allow it to address its debt obligations in an “orderly manner”. Natura has proposed to buy back its trading operations outside the U.S. for $125 million after the bankruptcy process is complete.