The Mexican division of House of Fuller has been fudging its autoship sales orders.

In August 2021 parent company Tupperware disclosed the fraud in an SEC filing. This prompted the SEC to open an investigation.

Tupperware acquired House of Fuller back in 2005. House of Fuller is listed as Fuller Cosmetics on Tupperware’s website.

In Mexico the company operates as Fuller Mexico.

Disturbingly, standard practice at Fuller Mexico is to add products to distributor autoship orders 
without consent.

The SEC refers to Fuller autoship orders as “Non-PO Sales”. Distributors are referred to as “Fullerettes”.

Fuller Mexico’s Non-PO Sales were automatic shipments several times a year of new or promotional items, like a new lipstick shade.

Fuller Mexico added the items to Fullerettes’ orders, typically at a discount or a special price, with the option to be returned.

If a distributor didn’t want the products they never ordered, they had to return them to Fuller.

Since 2017 or so, Fuller Mexico has been in decline.

As Fuller Mexico’s sales failed to meet targets between 2017 and 2019, Tupperware management at the Worldwide and Latin America regional levels heightened pressure on Fuller Mexico to meet unrealistic sales expectations.

This sent Fuller Mexico’s forced unsolicited autoship program into overdrive, to the further detriment of distributors.

Fuller Mexico increased its use of, and reliance upon, Non-PO Sales, through escalation of the frequency, type, and number of products shipped.

At least as early as 2018, the number of Non-PO Sales began to increase and shifted towards products with a higher profit margin, such as perfume, and away from the intended purpose of providing new or promotional products at a discount.

Fuller Mexico management adopted “aggressive strategies” to ensure distributors stayed active.

One example of these aggressive strategies was referred to as a “reactivation order,” or “suggested order,” whereby Fullerette supervisors identified Fullerettes who were close to becoming inactive in Fuller Mexico’s system, and used unsolicited “reactivation orders” to try to reengage those Fullerettes in the business and prevent the Fullerettes from becoming inactive in Fuller Mexico’s system.

Once a Fullerette was inactive, Fuller Mexico’s policy required bad debt for that Fullerette’s sales to be reserved at a higher rate.

First you’re sending out unsolicited orders, which is bad enough in and of itself. Then you penalize distributors for not paying for products
they never ordered?

This is easily the worst example of an MLM company maliciously harming consumers I’ve seen for some time.

And it gets worse…

In addition to management actively harming consumers, Fuller Mexico implemented systems to allow top distributors to screw them over.

Another strategy was known as “director sampling” or the “red button,” in which Fuller Mexico divisional directors who were at risk of not meeting sales targets could add Non-PO Sales to Ful

🤖 Quick Answer

What was the nature of the fraud committed by Tupperware's Mexican division?
Fuller Mexico engaged in unauthorized autoship sales practices by adding products to distributor orders without consent. The company automatically shipped new or promotional items multiple times yearly to distributors known as "Fullerettes," without their approval, violating standard business practices and consumer protection regulations.

When was the Tupperware autoship fraud discovered?
Tupperware disclosed the fraudulent practices in August 2021 through an SEC filing. The disclosure prompted the Securities and Exchange Commission to initiate an official investigation into Fuller Mexico's business operations and sales practices.

What is the relationship between Tupperware and Fuller Mexico?
Tupperware acquired House of Fuller in 2005. The company operates as Fuller Mexico in the Mexican market and is listed as Fuller Cosmetics on Tupperware's official website, representing a subsidiary division of the parent corporation

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