Internet killed the home party star
The decision to pull Tupperware out of New Zealand may have caught the brand’s fans by surprise, but a retail expert says the writing was on the wall.
UOL, New Zealand’s sole importer of Tupperware, announced on Tuesday it would close its business on October 30.
It said Covid-19 had caused a decline in sales and Tupperware parties and even as restrictions eased, people were reluctant to attend in-home events.
Chris Wilkinson, managing director of First Retail Group, said even before the pandemic, the party-plan, direct sales concept was facing challenges.
‘‘It was already being steadily eroded by growth in online shopping and changing consumer preferences, which has been a global trend. Avon closing their New Zealand operations in 2018 was an indication of where the model was heading.’’
Avon, a direct sales cosmetics company, said its exit from New Zealand would allow it to focus on markets with the greatest potential ‘‘to support its vision of becoming the world’s leading social beauty company’’.
The coronavirus pandemic had only made things harder for the direct sales model, Wilkinson said.
‘‘When Covid hit, the inability for that informal interaction between sellers and buyers, would have dramatically impacted sales, income for their sales agents, and the ability to attract new people to the business. Essentially, that would have stopped successive participation, which is necessary for progress.’’
Tupperware searches soar
A Trade Me spokesperson said Tupperware searches had soared more than 700% since the news broke.
‘‘Yesterday alone we saw almost 3000 searches for the reusable food storage containers on Trade Me,’’ she said.
There were almost 700 listings for Tupperware on the site, and the spokesperson said if you had any unwanted Tupperware, now would be the time to try to sell it.
The most expensive listing was for a full Tupperware set for $310, but there were also cereal containers and shakers up for grabs too.