The Tale of Tupperware - A History of Vintage Plastic

I grew up in the 80s and feel grateful that I was able to do so. We had great cartoons, even better music (huge fan of 80s music!), and unfortunately some crazy fashion styles that are becoming popular again today. Due to having a super sentimental family member, I still have most of my toys from the 80s. Stored up in the garage loft and in plastic totes in the basement, I have pieces of nostalgia right at my fingertips. Memory lane starts in my childhood home's backyard, up the garage loft steps, and a mere sifting through a huge cardboard barrel of 80s goodness. 

 

Though I complain that this stuff is around, I actually really love still having it around. The stuff brings back a lot of great memories & reminds me of how awesome being a kid in the 80s really was. In a seller’s viewpoint, I do have some items that would do well on EBay. Strawberry Shortcake is huge right now and people will pay a good price for authentic 80s Strawberry Shortcake & friends items. Who wouldn’t really… have you seen the “new” Strawberry Shortcake? Nothing like the original.

Anyway, I could go on about my 80s toys but will save that for another entry. Not related to toys, what else I remember about the 80s were the kitchenware items that my cousins and I used at our grandmother’s house, aunt’s house, and other relatives. That item was Tupperware. I didn’t know it as Tupperware then, I just knew it as the colored cups with the plastic lids with that raised lip that you drank out of it. Sure, it kinda was a glorified sippy cup but at the age of 6, they were cool. I also remember the pitchers that held a favorite drink of the time – Kool Aid. It was a burnt orange color with a lid that had to be pushed down in to fit just right. There was a suction sound I remember, knowing that signaled the lid wasn’t going to fall off and cause havoc. My mother still uses her brown and burnt orange Tupperware containers to hold Christmas cookies. The containers are over thirty years, but they still do a great job at keeping cookies fresh!

Similar to LustroWare, I never really considered looking for Tupperware when I was out at yard sales, estate sales, thrift stores, and the flea market. There is a big market for vintage Tupperware items on both EBay and Etsy, as these items have proven they can withstand wear & tear over the plastic products that are out today. 

~ A Tupperware History ~

The brand was the birth child of Earl Silas Tupper of New Hampshire. Raised in an agriculture atmosphere, he grew up helping his parents around farms and plant nurseries, whichever occupation his parents held at the time. Earl fashioned himself a career out of being a tree surgeon, but his true passion and dream was to be an inventor and create. He was meticulous in keeping track of all his ideas and time spent brainstorming his would-be inventions. Some items that he did think of were a fish-powered canoe and a muscle-building corset. Who wouldn’t want either of those?

In 1936, Earl declared bankruptcy and left the tree surgeon field. He took on a job at the Viscaloid plant, which dealt in plastics of the DuPont Chemical company. While working at the plant, Earl took a fancy to the plastics world and purchased some used molding machines from the company. Just two years after he left the agricultural business, Earl’s new venture of “Tupper Plastics” hit the market, producing such items as containers for cigarettes and soap.

Being the inventor that he was, Earl knew that the plastic during his time wasn’t the most durable or suitable for kitchen use. In 1945 he experimented with polyethylene pellets, which was lightweight and known for its’ durability. A few years after experimenting with the pellets, Earl produced the “Wonder Bowl” which was used for food storage. It promoted the “Tupper Seal”, which was later patented by Earl.

The beginnings of Tupperware started slow. The brand was mostly marketed to housewives, however housewives weren’t too interested in buying. The products were sold in hardware and department stores, but sales never took off. That all changed when a fellow woman and homemaker revolutionized the Tupperware brand and brought it into the homes of the American woman.

Brownie Wise, a Georgia native, was a divorced single mother. Trying to find a job that fit her schedule of being a single mom, she started selling home products out of her house. She was introduced to Tupperware and as they say, the rest is history.

 Brownie ordered some Tupperware items and began selling them from the comfort of her living room, inviting friends, family, and neighbors to view and try out the product. Earl Tupper caught wind of Brownie’s method of selling and in 1951, she became employed as president of sales of Tupper Home Parties. It was then decided by the company that selling out of the home by holding demonstrations would become the sole selling method of Tupperware.

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The idea of Tupperware parties was basically a gold star idea from the start. Homemakers and housewives were easy to market to, especially considering the convenience of the Tupperware party. Woman looked at going to a friend or relative’s house to view the items not just as a possible shopping trip, but as a new way to socialize and get together. Woman that were interested in working from home or were looking for a part-time job while tending to the kids could easily take on the job of selling Tupperware. Similar to the hostess parties that we have today such as Pampered Chef, there was always the lure of incentives and gifts for both the party giver and the party attendee.

With Brownie’s marketing idea and the popularity of the Tupperware party, Brownie became known as the face of the brand. In the 1950s, Florida became the headquarters for Tupperware and Brownie put her mark on the HQ as well. There were offices but also party spaces and even a pond. Jubilees were held yearly to entice women to amp up their Tupperware sales in order to have the chance to win an array of prizes and awards.

Earl Tupper gave Brownie the axe in 1958. Some stories allude to the fact that Earl was a shy man and didn’t appreciate all of the spotlight that Brownie was receiving, considering that Tupperware was Earl’s company and not Brownie’s. Other stories give a masculine power trip by referring to the fact that Brownie was the only female among the higher-ups at Tupperware, and the business men did not like this. Regardless, Brownie was shelved as the spokeswoman of Tupperware, though in recent years her image and name has once again been reconnected with the brand.

Since then, the Tupperware brand has endured some highs and lows, with perhaps the biggest change being that sales is not done solely through hostess parties anymore. Catalogs are now available and Tupperware products can be purchased online. Instead of going to a friend’s home for a Tupperware party, there are now “virtual” parties via the internet.

EBay has become the home for Tupperware as well. Just search for Tupperware and you become instantly aware of how prominent the brand still is and what is most sought after by collectors.Check our my next entry to learn more about buying/selling Tupperware & my recent amazing Tupperware find at a yard sale!