Tupperware Brands Corp. is gaining new life as a group of lenders will take control of the beleaguered food container company.
But the company said the change will bring about closure of operations outside of "global core markets with heavy liabilities."
The Orlando, Fla.-based company, which filed for bankruptcy court protection on Sept. 17, has an agreement with a group of secured lenders including Stonehill Capital Management Partners and Alden Global Capital to transfer ownership.
Tupperware filed for Chapter 11 protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., a move designed to give the company time to consider options. Tupperware had previously warned the company might not be able to continue as a viable business due to the weight of debt.
Transfer of ownership to lenders is expected to close by the end of October 2024, subject to court approval.
"Over the last year, we created a new strategy and operating approach that is digital-first, technology-led and asset-light, and preserved a global footprint for the Company," CEO Laurie Ann Goldman said in a statement. "We've made tremendous progress and are delighted this group of forward-thinking investors share our vision and will partner with us to grow."
Tupperware, in announcing the new ownership plan, said the company "will be rebuilt with a start-up mentality using an agile methodology in dynamic phases. The initial focus will be on global core markets including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, China, [South] Korea, India and Malaysia, and the new company intends to follow on with European and additional Asian markets."
As part of the company's growing struggles, Tupperware previously sold and leased back the company's last U.S. manufacturing site in Hemingway, S.C., to raise money. The company later decided to close the facility in favor of moving manufacturing once done there to Mexico.
With news of the ownership change comes word of additional closures.
"With the announcement of the proposed transaction, markets outside of the global core markets with heavy liabilities will wind down operationally," the company said in a statement that did not provide specifics.
"Winding down parts of the company will be a difficult but necessary decision to protect the future of the Tupperware brand. I want to thank all the wonderful people that will always be a part of the Tupperware family. Change and disruption are challenging, but at times, needed to move forward," Goldman said.
The transaction is structured, Tupperware said, "as a private sale of all intellectual property needed to create and market Tupperware's brand and award-winning products, plus operating assets in the United States and other foreign subsidiaries."
"After years of struggling with an over-leveraged balance sheet and outdated operating model, the transaction would mark a new day for the iconic brand," Tupperware said in announcing the deal that still requires court approval.
