As part of a move to improve productivity, the world´s largest producer of plastic household goods, Tupperware Corporation (Orlando, Florida / USA; www.tupperware.com), will depart from tradition and outsource more of its production, in core businesses as well as in peripheral segments. Alongside restructuring, the group plans to step up marketing efforts in Germany and France and the US, to put consumers in more of a party mood.

In its home market, where the Tupperware party seems to be winding down, sales and earnings have been depressed of late. Only the strength of the euro against the dollar boosted figures for 2003. Tupperware recently removed its products from shelves of the retail chain Target because it said customers were staying away from the at-home parties. At the same time, the group seems to be having trouble recruiting party hosts and hostesses, which double as its sales force.

Thanks to the currency effect, Tupperware´s worldwide turnover rose 6% in 2003 to USD 1.2 bn. Without this positive influence, sales would have declined 4%. Net profit fell by half to USD 48m (USD 90m in 2002). Europe is now the household goods manufacturer´s largest market. Sales here increased by USD 119m in 2003 to USD 539m, with USD 82m of the rise attributable to the strong euro. European earnings rose 25% to USD 110m. Adjusted for the currency effect, the upturn was 6%. North American turnover for 2003 fell by 17% to USD 223m. After a pretax profit of USD 30m in 2002, the group posted a loss in this market of USD 22.4m.

• e-Service:
Comprehensive Tupperware press release on 2003 results with charts (English) as PDF document (212 KB)