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Tupperware's failure to fully take advantage of digital sales ultimately led to the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

Tupperware Brands created a name that embedded itself in American kitchen life, but the company now faces Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which it initiated as of Sept. 17, it announced.

Tupperware, founded in 1946, pioneered sales strategies that relied on independent sellers to throw “Tupperware parties” where friends and neighbors would leave with bowls and cake pans they may or may not have needed. And for many years, that approach thrived.

However, the company now competes in a different customer landscape.

Tupperware Brands ranks No. 744 in the Top 1000. The database is Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of the largest North American online retailers. There, Digital Commerce 360 categorizes Tupperware as a Housewares & Home Furnishings retailer. Prior to Tupperware’s bankruptcy filing, Digital Commerce 360 projected the retailer’s online sales will reach $72.25 million in 2024.

Tupperware Brands web sales by year

Tupperware files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

“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 Laurie Ann Goldman, president and chief executive officer of Tupperware, in a statement. “We plan to continue serving our valued customers with the high-quality products they love and trust throughout this process.”

In detailing the bankruptcy decision, Goldman said the company was making the best choice possible in a difficult situation.

“Over the last several years, the company’s financial position has been severely impacted by the challenging macroeconomic environment,” Goldman explained, adding that Tupperware explored numerous strategic options and determined bankruptcy was the most viable option.

“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,” she added.

Experts say the company’s lack of a “digital-first” strategy until now led it into bankruptcy.

Why Tupperware filed for bankruptcy

Tina Wells, ecommerce expert and CEO at retail and brand consulting firm Wellspring Studio, said if Tupperware wants to turn things around, it needs to go digital.

“Having a bigger ecommerce presence, leveraging influencer and social media marketing strategies, brand partnerships with players in bigger markets, and creativity within their space would put them in a more competitive position,” Wells noted.

She added that Tupperware has a strong brand story. However, using that story as a way to increase revenue takes a skillful approach in the modern market.

Jennifer Silverberg, CEO of retail consultancy SmartCommerce, agreed that Tupperware’s lack of digital presence paved the way for the company’s bankruptcy filing.

“They were absurdly late to the ecommerce game,” Silverberg said. “Most importantly, they didn’t even have their ecommerce site until February 2021. The site they have today is simply a ‘catalog’ view of their products, without any supporting lifestyle content or reasons for buying.”

She added that while Tupperware did ultimately embrace its digital presence, it didn’t sell on Amazon until June 2022 or Target until October 2022.

Silverberg also said the company’s bankruptcy filing indicates a lack of experience in the ecommerce space.

“In its court filing, Tupperware notes that when a customer searches for ‘Tupperware’ on Amazon, Amazon ‘presently return[s] results for other brands, undercutting the company’s strategic purpose for selling on Amazon’ — which any ecommerce marketer knows is simply how Amazon works,” she said.

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