Iconic retail brand is closing all U.S. locations due to issues

We live in times when once extremely popular companies are closing their premises and/or declaring bankruptcy. This was the case with Bed, Bath & Beyond, Tuesday Morning, Christmas Tree Shops, The Body Shop, Red Lobster, Family Dollar, Sears, Express, Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, Pizza Hut, Boston Market, TGI Fridays, Popeyes, Outback Steakhouse and many more. The problems concern not only stores, but also brands, including the iconic one: Tupperware. The once-huge company just closed its only U.S. manufacturing facility due to financial problems.

Earl Tupper developed and sold its first products under the name Tupperware in 1946. Its plastic containers could store food and keep it fresh thanks to a “reflective seal” that was patented in 1949. The containers were often sold by door-to-door salespeople as well as through presentations, which mainly took place at parties. Tupperware still sells direct, but in recent years it has been difficult to find both sellers and customers because most people simply order food storage products online or buy them at local stores.

This has caused problems for Tupperware, which recently warned that it may no longer be able to continue as a going concern, stating that there are “significant doubts about the company’s ability to continue”. In a subsequent statement, they revealed plans to address their issues, saying: “The company is reviewing its real estate portfolio for properties available for potential sale or sale-leaseback transactions and is considering efforts to right-size, monetize fixed assets, cash management, and marketing and optimization channels to maintain or provide additional liquidity

According to the statement, last week they announced plans to close their only U.S. plant, which is located in South Carolina. The closure causes 148 employees to lose their jobs. A Tupperware spokesperson described the move, saying: “Last year, we sold our Hemingway (South Carolina) facility and by the end of the year we will move manufacturing operations to our facility in Lerma, Mexico, which already produces the majority of products for our U.S. and US. Canadian markets.”

They also revealed that things aren’t that bad for Tupperware: “We plan to invest in new distribution services through a new, state-of-the-art third-party logistics facility in the Midwestern United States. The transition is being done in phases over the remainder of the year.” However, the company has been slow to file financial reports, which is often a bad sign for finances. Their most recent earnings report came out in March, when they revealed that their net sales fell 16% in the third quarter. quarter of 2023.