The news sent shockwaves from India to Lesotho this week. Household executives (read housewives) clenched their heads in frustration on hearing that American food storage container, Tupperware, faces bankruptcy.
For decades, the brand has embedded itself firmly in millions of kitchens throughout the world. It has pitted friends and relatives against each other when one did not return the prized skhaftin (container).
It has sparked fierce competition at many a workplace as a sign of middle-class status during lunchtime.
Former Bafana Bafana player Matthew Booth was a subject of online ridicule in November when he baked a cheesecake for his side chick and forgot to return home the Tupperware container. Relations would be frayed when a friend or relative “forgot” a Tupperware container. For those, their padkos would be dished in an ice cream container.
Tupperware sales experienced a resurgence during the pandemic when people cooked while being forced to stay at home.
The rebound has seemingly failed to save the company, which faces delisting from the New York Stock Exchange.
So, what went wrong?
Some people reckon the company’s undoing was its durable products. After all, you can still use the same skhaftin your granny bought in the 1980s. One lady lamented how her mother spent a fortune over the years on Tupperware.
Others claim Tupperware products have become unaffordable in the current economic climate. The environmentally conscious say the world needs less plastic but this would be applicable to Tupperware competitors.
Then there are also questions around Tupperware’s tried and tested strategy of relying on sales agents for direct marketing instead of physical stores and digital online strategy in these modern times.
The company barely remains afloat while the search for capital continues but one thing is certain: 10 000 years from today, archaeologists will dig up a Tupperware skhaftin and butt their heads over its history and significance.
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