Tupperware Unsealed: Brownie Wise, Earl Tupper, and the Home Party Pioneers

As I write this, there is apparently a movie in development based on this book, with Sandra Bullock rumored attached, to play Brownie Wise.It is, overall, an extraordinary (well-told) story: the meteoritic rise of a female executive in the male-dominated business world of mid-20th -Century America. It's really an understatement to say she was before her time; it is difficult to imagine how solid that "glass ceiling" was way back then. She was the first woman on the cover of Business Week magazine. What is also extraordinary is how fast she fell, to the point where she is nearly a forgotten figure today (although an eventual movie might change that).You can see her fall approaching as you read about her rise to the top. The story of Tupperware is the story of two characters: Earl Tupper, the inventor/owner, who would just assume keep a low profile and make his money, and Brownie Wise, who brought Tupper's wares to market, building the highly-successful direct-sales operation, the Home Party Division. It was a yin-yang relationship. Within only a couple of years, there were 1000s of Tupperware "dealers" throughout the US, wowing homemakers with the plastic bowls that "burped" to seal in freshness. Wise became a celebrity, appearing in the major magazines of the day. Dealers and distributors competed to win the stylish clothing she wore. The annual conventions at the division's headquarters in Orlando, FL - the "jubilees" - were spectacular.And this is when you see the Shakespearean tragedy - the evitable fall after the envious rise. The publicity and her celebrity, used to promote the Tupperware brand and sales model, started to get to Wise's head - she started making serious mistakes -- and she was playing a game in which Mr. Tupper held all the cards - he owned the company. When Tupper decided it was time to fire Wise, the initial reaction from those he told was one of shock - how can you get rid of the single person publically-associated with the brand -- the one person so many dealers looked up to as their leader? What was not understood was the degree to which many were put off by the ego. As the author writes, Tupper (likely) "was throwing out a noose and letting Wise put it right around her own neck."It was this ego that resulted in one of the jubilees becoming Wise's "Waterloo" - a disaster, in which several people were injured, at least two seriously.There is a claim on Wikipedia and elsewhere that Tupper wanted to sell the company and he fired Wise because no buyer in those days would want to acquire a company with such a powerful female executive. That is certainly simplistic. Tupper wanted to sell the company to avoid a potentially huge tax liability, but by then Wise had become a liability in his eyes for several reasons.When Wise left the company, she received a settlement of $30,000. A paltry amount, considering Tupper subsequently sold Tupperware for $16 million, even still a "sacrifice price." Almost no one followed Wise, as she tried to build another direct sales company, unsuccessfully. The fall was complete.I initially read this book hoping to learn about Tupperware's successful sales model, its procedures, etc. Unfortunately, there's not a lot of that in this book. In fact, the only description of the rep structure is an excerpt from the Cosmopolitan magazine article in 1957.However, business-wise, there is a larger lesson to be learned: own a piece of the pie. Brownie Wise, who arguably was responsible for half of the success of the company, settled for less than 1% of what Mr. Tupper got when he sold the company (and retired overseas). While business practices were of course different than today, it's hard to imagine such a disparity, an issue Wise should have considered. Only a few years later Sam Walton would start his company, awarding generous stock options to his early employees.The even larger lesson is how one woman took on the male-dominated business world of 1950s America, and for a brief shining moment, built an empire.

I enjoyed reading the story of the team that basically set the stage for introducing tupperware to the world. I hear the author interviewed on public radio and he made it sound interesting. I found this book to be a quick read with great insight to what I feel is a great success story of the 20th century - both as a winning product and as a winning marketing strategy. Let's face it, while she didn't invent it, Brownie Wise really did perfect the marketing system told about in this book. It is told as a story and I much rather learn about something in story form than any other way. Her story was most interesting. I would have liked to meet her and have a brief discussion with her. based on the reading of this book I am sure she was fascinating. **If you found this review helpful, do vote by replying Yes to 'Was this review helpful' **

I heard rumors about a movie in the pre-production mode being planned about the original Tupperware Lady which would star Sandra Bullock as Brownie Wise. Originally downloaded the Kindle edition but was disappointed that the publisher denied rights to the illustrations. Undeterred I ordered the print edition with the illustrations from Amazon. This story of a pioneer in the house party method of retail selling of Tupperware products is well written and historically accurate (just google her and you will confirm this). I'm looking forward to the movie version. Meanwhile enjoy this compelling story of the rise and fall of Brownie Wise.

What a disappointment to discover, after I bought the Kindle edition, that all of the photos are "deliberately omitted from this space." This omission should be clearly stated BEFORE selling the book! I don't know why the photos were omitted, but since Kindle editions are supposed to be the same as print, I would call this deceptive advertising!

Book about beginning of home party. Story of women's choice to change her world trough things familiar to her, living room and kitchen. Story about choices, prices, goals and first steps. Story of human ego and accomplishment.

great book, lots of information i didn't know being a Tupperware consultant that has helped me, even have played some trivia games at my parties with information learned from this book.

Excellent read....enjoyed learning the inside story about Brownie Wise and Earl Tupper..an amazing successstory re the Home Party Pioneers though disappointed in Earl Tupper and his treatment of Brownie Wise.

I loved learning the details behind Tupperware. Didn't realize the impact this company had on a whole generation. Fascinating story and well written.