Tupperware products will be available in a retail store in Chicago, Illinois on April 10, 2023.
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Tupperware brand The company and some of its subsidiaries filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Tuesday, leading to reduced demand for its once-iconic food storage containers and mounting financial losses.
The company’s woes resume after a brief pandemic boost, when an increase in home cooking briefly boosted demand for its colorful, airtight plastic containers. Post-pandemic increases in raw materials such as plastic resin, as well as labor and freight costs, have further eroded Tupperware’s profit margins.
“The company’s financial condition has been significantly impacted by the challenging macroeconomic environment over the past several years,” CEO Laurie Goldman said in a release.
Tupperware had been planning to file for bankruptcy protection after breaching the terms of its debt and hiring legal and financial advisers, Bloomberg reported on Monday.
According to the bankruptcy filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of Delaware, the company has estimated assets of $500 million to $1 billion, estimated liabilities of $1 billion to $10 billion, and the number of creditors between 50,001 and 100,000.
Tupperware sales have fallen for six consecutive quarters since the third quarter of 2021, and Tupperware has been struggling to turn around its business for nearly four years as sticky inflation continues to hold back middle- and lower-income consumer segments.
In 2023, the company finalized a debt restructuring agreement with lenders and contracted investment bank Moelis & Co to help explore strategic alternatives.
