In April 2023, Tupperware Brands Corp. announced that there was "substantial doubt about the company's ability to continue as a going concern." The Orlando, Florida-based company tried attempts at additional financing and liquidity initiatives, but it was not enough to meet changing demands.
"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," said Tupperware President and CEO Laurie Ann Goldman in a statement.
Tupperware will seek court approval to continue operating and selling products during the court proceedings. The company will also seek court approval to begin a sale process for the business "in order to protect its iconic brand."
"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," said Goldman. "We plan to continue serving our valued customers with the high-quality products they love and trust throughout this process."
Brownie Wise and the history of Tupperware home parties
Founded in 1946, Tupperware became a household name post World War II, known for its airtight and durable containers that revolutionized food storage in the 20th century.
For decades, Tupperware was an integral part of the social and economic lives of women in the United States and Canada, after a middle-aged, single mother living in Detroit, Brownie Wise, introduced the concept of Tupperware home parties. A talented saleswoman, she began recruiting her own team of consultants for Tupperware in Detroit.
Soon after, "the Tupperware Home Parties of the 1950s and 1960s were the only way to purchase a line of polyethylene plastic storage containers that were the brainchild of Earl Tupper, a Massachusetts businessman," according to the History Channel. Tupper hired Wise as his general sales manager and vice president of Tupperware Home Parties in 1951; she moved to Florida to accept the position. "Wise knew how to demonstrate Tupperware. Her at-home demos were fun and frenetic."
Wise would toss a Tupperware bowl filled with liquid across the room to show that it didn’t break or leak, play fun games with her guests, and show how to "burp" airtight Tupperware seals correctly. Tupperware home parties revolutionized the company's marketing and sales approach, thanks to Wise. She was fired from the company in 1958 after a falling out with Tupper.
Before Tupperware, during her time as a housewife and mother in Detroit, Wise actively contributed to The Detroit News' "Experience" column — a forum where local readers shared stories, predominantly women, according to the Detroit Historical Society. Using the pen name "Hibiscus," Wise "wrote long, carefully crafted, and often romanticized descriptions of her life."
Tupperware home parties an easy opportunity for everyone
Upon hearing news of Tupperware's financial struggles in 2023, Crista Yeiter Simmons, 70, of Lowell, began reminiscing about her and her parents' involvement in the company. The Yeiter family owned and operated Seal Craft Sales, a Tupperware distributorship in Grand Rapids, for approximately 35 years.
Simmons grew up watching her parents host Tupperware parties and run the distributorship. Her mother, Ida Yeiter, was selling Avon products and making aprons when she was invited to a Tupperware party in 1958 and became a consultant herself. Seeing how much it was financially helping the family, Simmons' father, Sam Yeiter, got in on the act, too.
A World War II veteran and head cheerleader at Michigan State University, Sam Yeiter "would stand on an upside-down Tupperware Wonderlier Bowl to show how strong it was," Simmons said. Her parents did so well hosting Tupperware home parties that her father was asked to come on the company's staff in Kissimmee, Florida, in 1959. Her mother hated Florida, so the family moved back to Michigan after purchasing Seal Craft Sales in 1961.
The distributorship was in the top 10 distributorships in the country at the time, Simmons said. In the '70s, Sam and Ida Yeiter received the "Ad Astra" Award from Tupperware for their selflessness and dedication. "Ad Astra" means "To the Stars" in Latin. The award is now known as the "Lead With Your Heart" Award.
Tupperware was advertised to be as durable and handy as kitchen utensils.
At the age of 16, Simmons started working at her parent's distributorship, processing orders. By 17, she was hosting her own Tupperware parties, before even graduating high school.
"We played a couple games," Simmons said. "Each demonstrator had our own kits with various products, and we would feature those products during the party."
However, with the rise of the digital age, later coupled by the social distancing restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tupperware parties ceased, instead transitioning to a mostly online format.
Tupperware's lifetime warranty on most of its products means you'll have them for longer. The company will replace most items that break, crack or peel under normal use, including missing lids for when you can't seem to find the one that belongs to the container you're using.
Janet Henriksen Lloyd, a Tupperware consultant and stay-at-home mother of four, demonstrates how easy it is to close her Tupperware containers on a small table inside her home in Davison on Friday, May 26, 2023.
To this day, Tupperware provides its consultants with flexible work hours, empowerment, social connection and work-life balance.
"It's like a hobby but I also make money," said Janet Henriksen Lloyd, a Tupperware consultant in Davison who was the company's No. 1 consultant in personal sales throughout the U.S. for a week in April 2022. "I get 25% back on everything that I sell through my website. ... It's not a large income but you can make as much as you are willing to put in, and since I have four kids I don't have time, but I have enough time to keep my page running and it's a nice little boost of income."
Whether it's due to the durability of the plastic, the company's lifetime warranty products, or the home parties that gave women entrepreneurial opportunities — Tupperware has held up pretty well and its products will stick around for generations to come.
Previous reporting by Nour Rahal contributed to this story.