域外来风 │ 2006-04-18 18:19:23

Tupperware struggles to reinvigorate its empire.

March 20, 2006 issue - When a friend invited New Yorker Brenna Sinnott to a Tupperware party last month, she was skeptical. "I pictured all those old green containers my mom had," says the 24-year-old. "I didn't really know what to expect." To her surprise, there wasn't a stodgy storage container in sight at the party. But the ruby-rimmed plates on which the crudités were served, the glasses the hostess filled with Chardonnay, the stainless-steel fondue pot in which guests dipped marshmallows and fruit into melted chocolate—all these were available in the catalogs that sales consultant Tinamarie Engel handed out. By the end of the evening, Sinnott and her friends had placed orders totaling nearly $600. "This was definitely not your mother's Tupperware," says Sinnott, who works at a Manhattan publishing house. "I had no idea how cool the products would be."

上个月，一位朋友邀请在曼哈顿一家出版公司工作的纽约居民布伦娜·西诺特参加特百惠聚会，她显得相当怀疑。“我马上想到了我妈妈曾拥有的那些有年头的绿色的瓶瓶罐罐，”这位24岁的女性继续说，“我那时真不知道能期望什么。”但令她吃惊的是，聚会上并没有看到乏味的贮藏容器。红宝石色镶边的盘子里盛着生菜，女主人在玻璃杯中倒满了夏敦埃酒(一种无甜味白葡萄酒)，不锈钢溶罐里是热巧克力，客人们可以用软糖和水果蘸着吃－－所有这些在销售顾问蒂娜玛丽·恩格尔分发的的商品目录中都可以看到。到聚会快结束的时候，西诺特和她的朋友们已经定购了近600美元商品。“这绝对不是你母亲使用的特百惠了，”西诺特说，“我无法形容这些产品会有多酷。”

That's exactly what Tupperware is hoping more women will discover (buyers are still predominantly female). The public company has had a tough time reaching the daughters and granddaughters of the housewives who made Tupperware an American brand icon after World War II. And it needs them. One of Tupperware's strongest selling points—its lifetime guarantee—has made it difficult to persuade older customers to buy updated products. Indeed, CEO Rick Goings says he's been unable to persuade his own mother to replace the Tupperware she's had for 45 years.

而这些就是特百惠公司所希望的，公司希望能够有更多女性重新认识特百惠，而目前公司的顾客仍然以女性为主。二战后，特百惠依靠美国的家庭主妇成为一个成功的美国品牌，但在影响她们的女儿、孙女们这点上，这家上市公司却经过了一段艰难时刻。公司需要她们成为顾客。特百惠最有价值的卖点之一－－终生质保－－使得劝说老顾客购买新产品变得很困难。事实上，首席执行官Rick Goings说，他都无法劝说自己的母亲换掉用了45年的特百惠产品。

As a result, while revenues have increased in Asia and in Eastern Europe, they've slipped in the United States. In 2005, the Florida-based company had $1.2 billion in total sales worldwide, a 4 percent jump from the prior year. But non-North American sales accounted for more than 85 percent of total Tupperware sales. Homemakers elsewhere seem to have fallen in love with Earl Silas Tupper's patented invention (a plastic container with an airtight lid), which raises the question of why Goings would still refer to North America as "a crown jewel" in its business.

因此，当来自新市场亚洲和东欧地区的营业收入保持一路增长的同时，来自美国本土市场的收入却在持续下降。2005年，这家总部位于佛罗里达的公司全球销售额达到12亿美元，与前年相比增长4％。但非北美地区的销售额对总销售额的贡献超过了85％。其它地区的家庭主妇们似乎是爱上了塞拉斯·塔柏伯爵的专利发明（一种带有气密盖的塑料制品），这就带出了一个问题：为什么首席执行官Rick Goings仍然把北美地区称为特百惠事业的“王冠宝石”呢？

Nonetheless, he's pushing hard to reverse the domestic sales trend. Tupperware has added incentives to attract more saleswomen, and updated its products and parties. In the past year it's tried to build buzz by throwing star-studded Tupperware parties with guests like actor Ice T and showering celebrities with products at the Grammys. It also got a boost last fall when designer Cynthia Rowley's models walked the runway in specially designed wedge heels made of Tupperware for New York Fashion Week. "This gets people to look at us again," says Goings. "You don't do it with an ad in Good Housekeeping because that is exactly where people expect to see us."

我们可以从他所采取的一系列措施上一窥端倪。他尝试了各种措施以扭转国内市场销售额下滑的趋势。为了吸引更多的女性加入销售队伍，特百惠提高了奖励水平，改善了产品和聚会以使公司看起来更加现代。在过去一年里，公司努力发出这样的信息。特百惠聚会因为请了如男演员Ice T作为嘉宾而使聚会星光灿烂，在格莱美颁奖时向知名人士大量赠送产品。去年秋天它也得到了一个大肆宣传的机会。当时，设计师辛西娅·罗利的模特们穿着特百惠为纽约时尚周特制的坡跟鞋走台。“这使得人们再次把目光集中于我们，” 首席执行官Rick Goings说，“你不用在《优秀家务管理》杂志上登广告，虽然那是人们认为应该看到我们的地方。”

Goings says the upgraded products are meant to compete with upscale retailers like Williams-Sonoma rather than supermarket brands like Rubbermaid. But some might balk at spending $30 on a can opener, no matter how well it works. "The question is: will consumers pay for Tupperware when there are cheaper types of products in retail stores?" asks JPMorgan analyst Dara Mohsenian. Goings is convinced they will, once they've had a chance to examine the goods. But to do that, Tupperware has got to get more women like Sinnott to the parties.

在首席执行官Rick Goings看来，改进后的特百惠产品将会与高端零售商如Williams-Sonoma直接竞争，而不是像Rubbermaid的超市品牌竞争。但这种想法遭到了一些人的反对：JP摩根分析员Dara Mohsenian认为“问题在于消费者在面对零售店里更便宜的同类产品时还会愿意购买特百惠产品吗？”，也许某些人在花30美元买个开罐器上会犹豫不决，无论它运转的多么令人满意。但Rick Goings对此很有信心，“一旦顾客有机会检验产品，他们就会买。”但为了达到这个目的，特百惠就必须接触更多像西诺特这样的女性，邀请她们参加聚会。

Several years ago the company tried selling its products through Target stores, but that backfired when strong in-store sales led to a dramatic drop in party bookings. While Tupperware pulled out of the stores in 2003, the damage was done. Only 25 percent of the total U.S. sales force—just 22,000—was active last quarter. But Tupperware hopes new sales incentives will increase those numbers. The plan makes it easier for consultants to rise up the ranks—and earn more money—by enlisting new salespeople in addition to selling products. Tupperware can also now be purchased from salespeople through pages they've set up online at tupperware.com.

几年前，公司试图通过Target商店来出售产品，但事与愿违，店内销售的增加导致了聚会预约订单的大幅下滑。当特百惠在2003年撤出商店时，损失已经无法挽回。全美销售团队中的25％－－仅仅22000人－－在最后三个月中是处于积极状态。

特百惠希望新的销售政策会使这个数字有所提高。该计划将会使顾问可以通过招募新售货员的方法更容易的实现级别晋升，并能领取更多的报酬，同时继续通过销售产品获利。销售人员还可以通过建立在tupperware.com网站上的在线商店来出售特百惠产品。

Can new products, parties and sales incentive reinvent Tupperware? It's a recurring dilemma for iconic brands: if their popularity and identity are wrapped up in yesteryear, can they survive major technological and demographic changes? Once upon a time, marketing a product in one's living room seemed revolutionary. In the age of the Net, some may view it as only marginally quaint. Goings urges patience. "It takes time, but it'll be worth it," he says. Tupperware expects another drop in U.S. sales this year, and then an increase in 2007.

新产品、聚会和新的销售政策能彻底改造特百惠吗？对标志性品牌来讲，这是个经常遇到的两难选择：如果他们的声望和个性与过去的岁月有密切联系，那么，他们能在重大的技术进步和大范围的人口变化中幸存下来吗？从前，在某个人的起居室里推销产品似乎是革命性的。在网络时代，有些人也许会把它仅仅看作一种处于边缘的奇异做法。Rick Goings强调特百惠更需要耐心来面对这种情形。“这需要时间，但它值得我们花费时间，”他说，预期特百惠今年来自美国本土的销售仍将下降，到2007年将会回升。

Back in the Manhattan living room of last month's Tupperware party, the news for the company appears quite good. Brenna Sinnott had such a blast that she and her roommate plan to host their own party in just a few weeks.

让我们再会到上个月曼哈顿起居室里的那次特百惠聚会，对公司来说，情形发展的相当不错。布伦娜·西诺特有个爆炸性的想法——她和她室友计划几周后主办她们自己的特百惠聚会。

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