Tupperware MLM Review – Old Company New Money Opportunity?

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard of Tupperware. It's been around since your mom was a newlywed and even before that. Tupperware is a household name and very popular. But can you make money selling Tupperware? In this Tupperware MLM Review, I'll take a look at this very popular product to see if it's worth selling.

What is Tupperware?

I thought this review would be worthy of a little history in this case. Tupperware Plastics was founded in 1938. It wasn't until 1948 that Tupperware hit hardware and department stores. This means that the company has been around for over 70 years. That's a record for a lot of companies. The company was founded by Earl Silas Tupper who was an inventor and businessman who created this airtight plastic container company. They are now headquartered in Orlando, Florida and have offices in New Mexico and South Carolina.

There's an interesting backstory here. Earl Tupper used to work for DuPont. His supervisor gave him black polyethylene slag which were inflexible pieces that were a waste product of the oil refining process. Tupper invented a way to mold this waste product to create cups, plates, bowls and more.

Tupperware was originally sold in stores but then in the early 1950s Earl Tupper met a woman who told him she had been very successful selling Tupperware through home parties. So the products were removed from stores and the new marketing strategy was to sell Tupperware through home parties.

Are Tupperware Products Worth Their Price?

In the beginning, Tupperware was all about storage containers. Now, you can get a variety of different kitchen products that range from storage containers to kitchen utensils. The products are very durable but they are also a little on the costly side. I took a look at their catalog and purposely chose pretty basic storage containers.

As you can see by the prices above, the containers are expensive when you consider their use. And Tupperware has a lot of competition here as well. Rubbermaid is one of their main competitors that sell very similar products for far less money.

I took a look at the Walmart website and found similar storage containers. Customers can get more containers and spend far less money. So I'm not sure if this Tupperware is still a great deal for the consumer anymore. I think you are essentially buying the name. Yes, it's a good quality product but can you actually make commissions when there's cheaper stuff out there?  The one saving grace I found when researching about the Tupperware brand is their commitment to helping the environment. Pretty awesome considering their products are plastic. Have a look at their campaign video below.

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The Tupperware MLM Opportunity

The Tupperware opportunity, like most MLM opportunities, are designed to give you a flexible lifestyle. Once you sign up you have to buy a kit to get you started, You can begin to network and organize Tupperware parties.

If you are successful, you can go on to recruit others to join you. Then you'll earn commissions off the sales of your recruits.

How Much Does It Cost to Join Tupperware?

There are two different kits you can buy to get started. The Basic Business Kit is $60 plus tax and the Business Kit is $109 plus tax. In order to join, you must join through a Consultant. If you join through the website, you need to put in a zip code to join through a local Consultant. Once you join, you get a bonus gift that changes each month.

Can You Make Money With Tupperware?

Making money under an MLM umbrella is difficult at best. You'll need to have a well established network that you can tap into. The problem with Tupperware is that, while it's a name everyone can recognize, the products may be too pricey for your customer base. I would venture to guess that all the products can be found for a cheaper price at Walmart or Target with similar quality.

From a business standpoint, these products could be a pretty tough sell that could leave you spending more money than you can make. But let's assume you make some sales.  You can earn up to 35% commissions on your sales. As an active Consultant, you an also purchase additional Tupperware products at a 35% discount.

MLMs are designed to not only have you sell products but to recruit others to join you. In order to recruit people, you have to be able to show that you are successfully making money. If your potential recruits don't see how they can make money, recruiting will be difficult.

Pros:

Maintaining Sales

Like most MLMs, you have to maintain a certain sales number each month. In this case, you have to maintain $600 in sales in a 6-month period of time in order to maintain your active consultant status. That's only $100 per month.

Variety of Products

The product line is focused around kitchen storage and other kitchen products but there is an extensive catalog of products for people to choose from.

BPA Free

All plastic products produced by Tupperware are BPA free as of March 2010. These products are also recyclable. With people becoming more environmentally conscious, this is a nice selling point.

Online Parties

You don't have to hold parties at someone's home. You can also have an online party through Facebook. You can also have a Catalog Party which is where you give someone catalogs and order forms and they collect the orders for you. This would be common for the workplace.

Cons:

Plenty of Complaints

According to the BBB, (Better Business Bureau) Tupperware has experienced plenty of complaints ranging from warranty issues to shipping prices to misrepresenting the "lifetime warranty" to receiving the wrong products and numerous customers requesting refunds. Because of all the complaints, the BBB has only one star listed for Tupperware.

Outrageous Shipping Charges

Another reason Tupperware may be a hard sell as a Consultant is the that the shipping charges are pretty exorbitant. Customers are charged 10% of the total sale and an additional 5% if the products are shipped directly to the customer.

Shipping Charges May Eat Your Commissions

Whether you are a Consultant or a customer, everyone has to pay the full price for taxes and shipping. Consultants do not receive a discount on either. So your 35% commission could be reduced or eliminated depending on the shipping charges.

Is Tupperware a Scam?

I can't say that Tupperware is a scam but what I can say is that since it's an MLM business model, you are out of pocket before your first sale. That's never a great starting point. But a lot will depend on how much you can sell and how many people you can recruit. So if you plan to do this as a side business you could make a few bucks but if this is going to be your primary source of income, you should be VERY good at selling.

Final Thoughts

If you really want to build a business that provides you with a flexible schedule, you can do better than sign up with MLMs. There's usually an upfront cost as well as a minimum number of sales you need to maintain to keep your active status. If you really want to start your own business, check out my number one recommendation. You'll get plenty of tools, training and access to great resources to run your business.