Tupperware to officially shut down in Australia after declaring bankruptcy

Tupperware is set to close its Australian operations, leaving hundreds of sales and warehouse workers out of work just before Christmas.

It comes after the struggling brand filed for bankruptcy in September before being bought by a group of lenders last month.

Party Products, a company formed by the lenders, purchased the global rights to the Tupperware brand name, its associated intellectual property and its operations in core markets.

However, Australian staff have been told that the new company will close its Australian operations and instead focus on operating Tupperware in certain core markets, including the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, China, Korea, India and Malaysia.

“We have been told that the new owners who bought Tupperware Global will not continue with Tupperware in Australia,” a Tupperware Australia employee told 2GB host Ben Fordham.

“They’re only keeping eight of the 70 countries open, and unfortunately Australia isn’t one of them.”

The closure would leave more than 10,000 sales consultants and 300 warehouse employees without jobs, the Tupperware employee said.

The 77-year-old food storage company, which has been operating in Australia since 1961, withdrew from New Zealand last year and has struggled with declining demand for home products in recent years due to the growth of home delivery apps and the lack of commitment to their iconic Tupperware -parties.

Tupperware sales consultant Maria told Fordham that the new owners, Party Products, had informed employees that they would not continue with Tupperware in Australia.

“They’re only keeping eight of the 70 countries open and unfortunately Australia isn’t one of them,” Maria said.

‘We do not yet know a definitive date for Australia. We’ve been told we’ll get all our provisions and what’s owed to us, but that’s all we know so far.”

Maria, who has worked for the brand for 15 years, said that while she was okay with the company closing, other Tupperware employees had made their careers.

They are the ones I feel sorry for,” Maria said.

“But the writing has been on the wall for about four years.”

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Tupperware Australia for comment.

While the brand’s sales briefly rose during the COVID-19 pandemic as families prepared more home-cooked meals during lockdown, the trend reversed sharply last year as restaurant dining boomed again.

The company will focus on sales in core markets including the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, China, Korea, India and Malaysia.

Professor Gary Mortimer, a business and retail expert at Queensland University of Technology, told Daily Mail Australia the company has failed to innovate or appeal to younger customers.

He explained that fewer people are at home than in the 1960s, and because women work outside the home, there is less appeal for Tupperware parties, the traditional sales method in which consultants came to the host’s home to sell the range to friends and neighbors. to sell. .

Over the years, the direct sales model has generally suffered as the rise of e-commerce and demographic changes have led to smaller household sizes and the convenience of individual meals, leading people to cook less in bulk.

‘Tupperware has existed as a brand for over 75 years. It grew in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s through product innovation and creating innovative solutions for kitchenware,” explains Professor Mortimer.

“But today there are significant amounts of competing products on the market, and there is only so much innovation you can apply to food storage.”

He said because of the product’s durability, meaning many Australians stuck with their Tupperware for years.

“Part of the problem is the durability and life expectancy of the product itself,” he said.

‘It’s positioned as a high-quality product, not something you buy every year or so on a regular basis. I’m sure there are many kitchens across Australia with a few Tupperware pieces in them.”

He said people tend to cook less for large groups and instead opt for convenient delivery options, reducing demand for storage containers.

“Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows we also have smaller families, and we are more likely to live in smaller households, which means less batch cooking,” Professor Mortimer said.

‘People no longer make large meals or store them, but opt ​​for greater convenience around portion control meals in one portion and consume them by throwing away the packaging.’

Tupperware sees its market dominance threatened by competition from other popular brands, including Rubbermaid, Glad, Pyrex and Oxo

Professor Mortimer added that the consumers the brand first attracted in the 1960s and 1970s are now in their 80s and 90s, and the brand is not resonating with others in the same way.

He explained that the brand does not advertise on TV or social media, and customers will not see it in stores, meaning it does not reach a younger audience, while similar products are popular on the shelves of supermarkets such as Coles and Woolworths, which people often do. choose instead.

“When it started, it was supported a business model with a party plan, and it worked very well through network sales.

“But now that moms and dads are working, the party planning business model has declined. Mothers are no longer at home, they work.’