The inspiring and heartbreaking story of the woman behind Tupperware parties
When it comes to food storage, there are many imitators, but there is only one Tupperware. Created by prolific inventor Earl Tupper, the innovative airtight plastic containers took the world by storm in the 1950s, but did you know the success of the brand can be attributed to one very clever woman?
After losing a tree-surgery business during the great depression, Tupper began to work for a plastics factory, where he purchased some moulding machines and set about experimenting. After creating some beads and plastic containers for cigarettes, Tupper created what he called the “Wonderlier”, which was created without the filler that made plastic stiff.
The bowl featured an innovative airtight, leakproof seal, which Tupper wisely patented. In 1946, Tupper was selling his range of designs in hardware stores, but sales were very slow. But when a friend gave Brownie Wise a set of Tupperware bowls, that’s when everything changed.
A rep for a range of cleaning utensils sold at home parties (sound familiar?), Wise was quick to see the potential of Tupperware, realising that women would love the product if only someone could demonstrate how the seal lock worked. Tupper brought Wise on board and by 1950, her team were selling more Tupperware than stores were. Wisely, Tupper made her vice president and sales manager, and Tupperware began to be sold exclusively at home parties.
Brownie Wise was the first woman ever to appear on the cover of Business Week. But in 1958, Tupper fired her. Reportedly, the differences between the pair were exacerbated when her success made her a celebrity. After Tupper forced her out, all references to Wise were removed from company literature. She owned no stock, and left with one year’s salary – around US$30,000. Soon after Wise had left, Tupper sold the company for US$16 million.
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