Taking a giant step beyond its traditional parties, Tupperware Corp. will begin selling its products in SuperTarget stores in October.
The stores will be staffed with Tupperware consultants who will explain and demonstrate the products like they do at Tupperware parties.
The partnership with Target is only the latest step the company, located about 20 miles south of Orlando, has taken recently to expand the distribution of Tupperware products beyond the parties. In the past three years, Tupperware has sold its kitchen utensils and plastic storage containers at shopping mall kiosks, online and on television. The closest SuperTarget to South Florida is in Orlando.
“It’s the next step, but it’s a big step,” said chairman and CEO Rick Goings. “This isn’t going to be Tupperware products just sitting on the shelf.”
The Tupperware salespeople will earn their compensation based on what is scanned at the checkout line in the 62 SuperTarget stores nationwide. Forty to 50 Tupperware products will be offered, and the salespeople will offer information on the product, recipes and timesaving tips.
Target will get a cut of the sales in exchange for taking care of overhead, although Goings wouldn’t be specific.
By placing Tupperware products in stores, though, the company runs the risk of having customers see it beside less expensive competition. But Goings said he doesn’t think that would be a problem.
“We sell Rolexes, not Timexes,” Goings said. “We sell an ice cream scooper for $15. You can buy a junk ice cream scooper for $3. Now a lot of people who were buying junk can buy Tupperware.”
Tupperware had a net income of $74.9 million on $1.07 billion sales last year.
