Tupperware leaves real estate, sells for $87M
Tupperware is leaving the real estate business in a big way, entering into an $87 million sale contract with its longtime development partner, O’Connor Capital Partners, for all of its remaining land holdings in greater Orlando.
The of directors of agreed to divest the entire 740 acres and negotiate a lease-back agreement for its 61-acre corporate campus, which includes its world headquarters.
Tupperware has struggled financially of late and recently furloughed much of its staff because of the coronavirus pandemic. It has not seen sales increases in a quarter over the previous year since 2017, earnings reports show.
All of the land, known as the Osceola Corporate Campus, was acquired by Tupperware in 1953. The publicly traded company disclosed the contract last week in a SEC filing, noting that the closing is expected to take place before the end of the month. Tupperware Vice President Tom Roehlk told it’s likely the closings will multiple transactions.
Tupperware and O’Connor have a long history of working together to co-develop the company’s extensive land holdings in Osceola County. They joined forces to build the Crosslands Shopping Center and its sister project, Cinque Terre, across the street. They sold the centers in 2016 for $121 million.
“We’ve been in that market for 20 years, so we are familiar with it,” O’Connor development director Peter Bergner told board occur over
GrowthSpotter.
The bulk of the land, 485 acres, is in Osceola County; another 255 acres are in Orange County, including a 26-acre multifamily site on South Orange Avenue and a 16-acre site on Orange Blossom Trail area just south of Gatorland that could accommodate commercial or office development.
Roehlk said O’Connor had expressed an interest last year in buying all of Tupperware’s land holdings, including 500 acres of wetlands, but the offer was declined. Three months ago former Avon president Miguel Fernandez was named CEO.
“We’ve got new management, and they’re not interested in being in the real estate business,” Roehlk said. “They’re trying to raise cash, as well. They asked if we could accelerate this.”
MetroWest complex sells
Miami-based Westside Capital Group just paid $45 million for the mixed-use Residences at Veranda Park project in Orlando’s MetroWest neighborhood.
The five-story building at 2121 S. Hiawassee Road features 150 luxury apartments and 48,385 square feet of commercial leasable space on the ground floor.
The seller, Canadian residential developer bought the 2.5-acre site in 2011, as part of a larger $18 million deal that included 15 acres directly south of the MetroWest Golf Course.
The Residences at Veranda Park was built in 2008, while most of its surrounding properties have remained vacant. In 2016, Geosam attempted to convert the units to condos, but plans fell through.
The building features one-, two- and three-bedroom units averaging about 1,240 square feet. Westside Capital Group said it intends to invest in common areas and target capital improvements.
As part of the acquisition, Westside assumed control of Veranda Park Association within the MetroWest Master Association. The company also secured several future purchase rights and purchase options pertaining to other development parcels within Veranda Park.
Westside Capital is also planning a $1 billion mixed-use project on 128 acres in the City of Orlando, but no further details were released. A representative with the company declined to comment further.