Buzz
While Tupperware™ is synonymous with food storage, many intriguing details about this iconic brand remain unknown to most.
1. THE NAME TUPPERWARE™ COMES FROM ITS FOUNDER, EARL TUPPER.
The iconic storage solutions didn’t get their name by chance. Earl Tupper, the inventor, named the plastic products after himself following years of experimenting with plastics and numerous failed inventions. A driven entrepreneur, Tupper established Tupper Tree Doctors to achieve his ambition of becoming a millionaire by 30 while providing for his wife and five children. When the Great Depression halted his business, Tupper took a position at a plastics factory in Leominster, Massachusetts. This role sparked his passion for innovation, leading him to create beads and plastic cigarette cases. By the late 1940s, his efforts culminated in the invention of the first Tupperware™ bowls, known as Wonderbowls.
2. EARL TUPPER INVENTED A NAIL DESIGN KIT THAT WAS INNOVATIVE FOR ITS ERA.
Beyond revolutionizing food storage, Tupper was a prolific inventor. His notebooks, now digitized and housed at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, reveal a treasure trove of ideas aimed at solving everyday challenges. Among his creations were no-drip ice cream cones, more comfortable corsets, fishing poles that weighed catches instantly, and even a boat powered by fish. Before Tupperware™, Tupper developed a nail design kit in 1937, featuring small plastic decorations that could be glued onto nails for stunning manicures. Although loved by friends and family, the kits never made it to the market.
3. TUPPER'S EARLY BOWLS WERE DESIGN MASTERPIECES.
via Smithsonian Institute Libraries
Tupper poured significant effort into the Wonderbowl’s design, aiming to craft a stylish piece of dishware that stood apart from typical kitchen products. Initially, the Wonderbowl garnered praise and won multiple design awards. By 1956, Tupper’s plastic creations were even showcased at the New York Museum of Modern Art. For a period, he even operated a retail store on Fifth Avenue, dedicated to his groundbreaking food storage bowls.
4. THE STORAGE CONTAINERS INITIALLY FAILED TO GAIN TRACTION.
Although Tupper was a brilliant inventor, his marketing skills fell short. In its early stages, Tupperware™ faced poor sales at its Fifth Avenue store and struggled with catalogue orders. Despite having a solid product, Tupper’s salesmanship was lacking. His earlier invention, the "Sure-Stay" bobby pin, offered better hold than competitors, but his unconvincing ad copy failed to attract buyers: "Many women wear wigs or hairpieces. Wigs are expensive, and one’s social standing often depends on their appearance. A reliable 'Sure-Stay' hairpin is essential." Similarly, early Tupperware™ sales mirrored the struggles of his other poorly marketed inventions.
5. A SINGLE MOTHER WITH SALES TALENT RESCUED TUPPERWARE™.
Tupper knew he had crafted a practical and artistic product for modern homemakers, but his efforts weren’t translating into sales. Enter Brownie Wise, a divorced single mother with an eighth-grade education and a knack for sales. Without her, Tupperware™ might never have become a household name. After facing gender bias at Stanley Home Products, where she was told "management isn’t for women," Wise left her job selling brooms in 1949 and began promoting Tupperware™. That year, she generated $150,000 in sales and became Florida’s distributor. Recognizing the company’s issues, such as shipping delays and order errors, Wise contacted Tupper. Their meeting revealed her secret to success: home party sales, which became the cornerstone of Tupperware’s™ future.
6. BROWNIE WISE PIONEERED THE HOME PARTY SALES MODEL.
Shortly after meeting Wise, Tupper appointed her to a groundbreaking leadership position for women in the 1950s: Vice President of Tupperware™. Wise’s revolutionary strategy for Tupperware’s™ success wasn’t entirely original. Inspired by her former employer, Stanley Home Products, which exclusively sold through home parties when door-to-door sales were still common, she adapted this approach to elevate Tupperware™. Her efforts turned the company into a booming home goods brand, reshaping retail sales methods. In her first year as vice president, Tupperware™ orders exceeded $2 million, all thanks to the home party model. Wise believed in empowering individuals, famously stating, "Build the people, and they’ll build the business."
7. EARLY TUPPERWARE™ SELLERS DIDN’T PITCH—THEY ‘DATED’ PARTIES.
Athenamama via Flickr // CC BY-SA 2.0
For many stay-at-home mothers and housewives in the 1950s, '60s, and later, selling Tupperware™ became a flexible and lucrative side hustle. The job required minimal training and could be adjusted to fit their schedules. However, Tupperware™ emphasized that its saleswomen—referred to as dealers or consultants—weren’t just scheduling sales events; they were "dating" parties (a term still used today to mean scheduling). The aim was to create a lively, enjoyable environment with games, such as one where guests won miniature Tupperware™ items for crafting the best sales pitch for their husbands.
8. TOP TUPPERWARE™ SELLERS INVOLVED THEIR HUSBANDS.
twitchery via Flickr // CC BY 2.0
While the majority of Tupperware™ sellers were women, the most successful ones often enlisted their husbands’ help. High-performing dealers could advance to managerial roles, enjoying benefits like extra commissions, recognition in the company newsletter, and rewards at the annual Tupperware™ Jubilee. Women who excelled as managers could even become regional distributors, responsible for managing sales and operations in their region. However, due to the era’s social norms and the challenges women faced in securing business loans or bank accounts, married women could only become distributors if their husbands left their jobs to work alongside them full-time.
9. WISE ENJOYED REWARDING TOP TUPPERWARE™ SELLERS WITH LAVISH GIFTS.
To motivate Tupperware’s™ top performers, Wise introduced the annual Tupperware™ Home Parties Jubilee, a celebration for leading hostesses, managers, and distributors. Featuring themes like "Around the World in 80 Days" and "Arabian Nights," the event rewarded winners with extravagant prizes such as German clocks, fur stoles, Chinese carvings, and entire wardrobes. The inaugural Jubilee in 1954 followed a gold rush theme, where attendees unearthed buried treasures as rewards.
10. ONE TUPPERWARE™ JUBILEE SPARKED NUMEROUS LAWSUITS.
The 1957 Tupperware™ Jubilee turned disastrous due to severe weather. Wise had organized an island-themed celebration, but a sudden thunderstorm disrupted the beach luau, causing chaos among the 1200 guests. This led to multiple boat accidents and 21 injuries. Tupperware™ spent years dealing with the resulting lawsuits in court.
11. THE SECRET TO TUPPERWARE’S™ SUCCESS WAS THE BURP.
The magic of Tupperware™ lies in its signature "burp"—a technique where the lid is sealed and then slightly reopened to release trapped air. Earl Tupper drew inspiration from the method of sealing paint cans to create an airtight closure. However, the burping process posed challenges for individuals with disabilities or limited hand mobility. In the 1960s, Tupperware™ addressed this issue with its Instant Seals line, offering containers that could be sealed with a simple finger press.
12. TUPPERWARE™ VENTURED INTO TOYS.
During the peak of Tupperware™ popularity, the company expanded beyond kitchenware, producing items like drawer organizers, portable desks, and fly swatters. Capitalizing on the baby boom, Tupperware™ introduced its own toy in the 1960s—the Shape-O. Since then, children have enjoyed fitting geometric shapes into this iconic red and blue ball.
13. TUPPERWARE™ CONTAINERS FEATURE BRAILLE MARKINGS.
In 1993, Tupperware™ aimed to enhance accessibility for visually impaired individuals. The company introduced its CrystalWave line in the early 1990s, incorporating Braille on container bases to display volume measurements.
14. BROWNIE WISE AND EARL TUPPER PARTED WAYS ON BAD TERMS.
Although Tupperware™ became a kitchen essential across the nation, the relationship between its founders was far from harmonious. Despite their differences, Tupper and Wise’s collaboration propelled the company’s growth. However, by 1958, Tupper grew frustrated with Wise’s lavish spending, her prominence as the "First Lady of Tupperware™," and the fallout from the previous year’s Jubilee disaster. Tupper reportedly informed top executives that he was done with Wise and intended to dismiss her. With no ownership stake, Wise fought Tupper in court and eventually received a year’s salary as severance. She later ventured into home party cosmetics businesses but never replicated her Tupperware™ success. Tupper sold the company within a year for $16 million, divorced his wife, and relocated to Costa Rica, where he passed away in 1983. Wise died in 1992.
15. VINTAGE TUPPERWARE™ IS A HIGHLY SOUGHT-AFTER COLLECTIBLE.
Over the decades, Tupperware™ designs have evolved to align with shifting trends, color palettes, and food preservation demands. Vintage pieces have gained popularity among collectors, with iconic sets like the 1960s Wonderlier Bowls fetching prices of around $45 per set. Notably, the Smithsonian Institution holds a collection of over 100 Tupperware™ items, spanning from 1946 to 1999. It’s fascinating to think that your kitchen might be home to such a significant slice of pop culture history—just be sure to keep those lids intact!
