Tupperware scraps open-market auction plan; opts for $23.5 million sale to lenders

Food storage container brand Tupperware has cancelled its plans for an open-market auction of its assets and has decided to sell its business to a group of lenders, according to Reuters news agency.

The bankrupt company will be selling its business for $23.5 million in cash and over $63 million in debt relief.

In a court hearing last week, Tupperware argued that the lenders, who bought the company at a steep discount, should not be allowed to squeeze out Tupperware's other creditors and prevent them from benefiting from the sale.

The lenders argued that the proposed auction would unfairly prevent them from using a debt exchange as part of their bid for Tupperware's assets.

According to Reuters, lenders poised to acquire Tupperware include Alden Global Capital, Stonehill Institutional Partners, and a trading desk of Bank of America.

Tupperware filed for bankruptcy protection in September, with $818 million in debt and a plan to find a buyer within 30 days.

However, a faction of Tupperware's lenders opposed the company's sale plan, claiming the assets for themselves instead.

As per Reuters, the new sale agreement will allow the lenders to purchase Tupperware's brand name and operations in multiple markets. The food storage and kitchen products company will initially focus on markets including India, the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, China, Korea, and Malaysia. It intends to expand to European and additional Asian markets. CEO Laurie Ann Goldman said that Tupperware will wind down its operations in markets where it has heavy liabilities.