What Sterilite does

Sterilite Corporation, founded in 1939 by Saul and Edward Stone alongside Earl Tupper, is a privately held, family-owned plastic housewares manufacturer and the largest of its kind in North America. The company is headquartered in Townsend, Massachusetts, operates seven manufacturing plants and more than 12 million square feet of production space across the United States, and builds on injection molding expertise originally developed through wartime production of essential plastic goods for the Armed Forces in the 1940s. Its product portfolio spans clear storage containers (HingeLID and EZ Carry lines from 20 to 120 Qt), totes (4 to 40 Gal, including Industrial and Latch-and-Carry), drawer units and utility carts, baskets, bins and crates, wastebaskets (StepOn, TouchTop, SwingTop), Ultra•Seal airtight food storage, laundry baskets and hampers, kitchen solutions, garage shelving and cabinets, and office organization products. Products are manufactured domestically and sold across consumer, retail, and small-business use cases spanning closets, kitchens, garages, bathrooms, dorm rooms, craft rooms, workshops, and offices.

Sterilite monetizes through wholesale hardware sales to retail partners and end consumers. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; products are positioned at mass-market price points and distributed primarily through three national retail channels: Home Depot, Target (with 55 exclusive SKUs), and Walmart (with 91 exclusive SKUs, the largest exclusive offering in the portfolio). Direct-to-consumer marketing is supported through the Simply Stored blog, email newsletter, and social channels (Facebook, Pinterest), generating top- and mid-funnel demand without disclosed paid-acquisition scale. The revenue model is straightforward unit-volume hardware sales with no subscription, licensing, services, or platform revenue disclosed.

Operationally, Sterilite is a low-headcount-corporate but high-manufacturing-asset business: it discloses 51–100 employees in corporate functions yet operates seven production plants, implying that plant-level production labor is either counted separately or the headcount band covers only administrative roles. The company has no disclosed parent company, subsidiaries, private equity ownership, M&A activity, or capital-raise history. It has remained continuously independent since founding, with the corporate footprint and channel partnerships representing the company's primary strategic assets.

Name

Sterilite

Legal name

Sterilite Corporation

Website

https://sterilite.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Sterilite Corporation is the largest plastic housewares manufacturer in North America, producing injection-molded storage containers, totes, drawers, wastebaskets, food storage, and laundry products sold primarily through Home Depot, Target, and Walmart.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Plastic Housewares

NAICS

Other Plastics Product Manufacturing (32619), Plastics Product Manufacturing (3261)

SIC

Plastics Products, Nec (3089)

akta.pro primary industry

Consumer Products Injection Molding (Housewares, Toys, Personal Care) (IMANAFAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food Storage Containers (Disposable & Reusable) (CRAJAGAF), Cleaning Caddies, Storage & Organization Accessories (CRAJAIAI), Rigid Food Containers (Cups, Trays, Clamshells) (IMALAAAD)

Keywords

• Plastic housewares
• Storage containers
• Home organization
• Injection molding
• Plastic bins

Headquarters

HQ city

Townsend

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Plastic Housewares Sales: Sterilite generates revenue through the manufacture and sale of plastic storage containers, bins, drawers, totes, wastebaskets, laundry products, and kitchen solutions to retailers and consumers across North America.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Sterilite manufactures and sells a full line of plastic housewares including clear storage containers, totes, drawers, baskets, bins, crates, wastebaskets, Ultra•Seal™ food storage, laundry baskets and hampers, kitchen solutions, shelving, and office organization products. The company operates its own injection molding manufacturing across seven U.S. plants and distributes products to consumers through major national retailers Home Depot, Target, and Walmart.

Product overview

Sterilite is a plastic housewares company offering a unified portfolio of storage and organization products primarily for household applications. The core product lines include Clear Storage Containers (HingeLID, EZ Carry boxes from 20-120 Qt), Totes (4-40 Gal Industrial, Latch and Carry, Stacker lines), Drawer Storage (stacking drawers, drawer units, Weave Tower decorative), Baskets/Bins/Crates, Wastebaskets (StepOn, TouchTop, decorative Weave), Ultra•Seal™ Food Storage (airtight containers with gaskets), Laundry Products (baskets, hampers), Kitchen Solutions (beverage, food prep, sinkware), Shelving & Cabinets (garage units), and Office Organization (file boxes). Products are sold through major retailers (Home Depot, Target, Walmart) and serve rooms including closets, kitchens, garages, bathrooms, dorms, and offices.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Clear Storage Containers Transparent plastic storage boxes available in multiple sizes from 20 Qt to 120 Qt, with HingeLID, EZ Carry, and stackable designs for general household storage needs.
• Totes Plastic storage totes in capacities from 4 Gal to 40 Gal, including Latch and Carry, Industrial Tote, and Stacker Tote lines for garage, basement, and general storage.
• Drawer Storage Stacking drawers, drawer units, and utility carts in various sizes, including Weave Tower decorative lines, for closet, craft room, and home office organization.
• Baskets, Bins, and Crates Decorative and functional storage solutions including file crates, storage crates, mini crates, and children's toy storage bins in various colors and styles.
• Wastebaskets Waste containers from 1.5 Gal to 7.5 Gal, including StepOn, TouchTop, and SwingTop lid mechanisms, plus decorative Weave designs for kitchen, bathroom, and vanity rooms.
• Ultra•Seal™ Food Storage Airtight food storage containers with gaskets and steam-release vents, available in rectangle and square shapes ranging from 3.1 to 12.0 cup capacities.
• Laundry Products Laundry baskets, hampers, and cleaning supplies including the 1.5 Bu. Laundry Basket and various utility products for laundry room organization.
• Kitchen Solutions Food preparation, beverage, and sinkware plastic products including cake servers, beverage containers, drawer organization systems, and specialty kitchenware.
• Shelving & Cabinets Garage and utility shelving units and cabinets including 4-shelf and 5-shelf units, and 4-tier tote racks for industrial and home storage.
• Office Organization File boxes and office storage drawers for home and professional office organization, including wide drawer units and file crates.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Home DepotcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHome Depot serves as a major retail distribution partner for Sterilite, offering exclusive garage, storage, and organization products through Home Depot-exclusive product lines.
• TargetcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTarget is a key retail partner offering Sterilite retailer-exclusive products. The partnership includes 55 exclusive product SKUs.
• WalmartcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWalmart is the largest retail partner by exclusive SKU count with 91 exclusive Sterilite product SKUs available in stores and online.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Ziploc (S.C. Johnson): Ziploc is a direct competitor in plastic food storage containers, competing directly with Sterilite's Ultra-Seal line on the shelves of Walmart, Target, and grocery channels. Both brands target the same consumer use case of airtight, reusable plastic food storage.
• Tupperware Brands: Tupperware is a direct peer in plastic food storage containers, including the Ultra-Seal category that Sterilite competes against. Both brands are built around injection-molded plastic housewares with airtight lid systems and serve North American consumers through retail and direct channels.
• Rubbermaid (Newell Brands): Rubbermaid is the most direct comparable to Sterilite, offering plastic storage containers, totes, bins, and organizational housewares across North America through similar mass-retail channels. Both companies compete head-to-head in storage and organization at retailers like Walmart and Target, and Rubbermaid's product portfolio overlaps substantially with Sterilite's clear storage, totes, and wastebasket lines.
• Hefty (Reynolds Consumer Products): Hefty competes with Sterilite in plastic household goods including storage and wastebasket-adjacent categories. Both brands are anchored in injection-molded plastic disposables and durables distributed through the same US mass retailers.
• Simplehuman: Simplehuman directly competes with Sterilite in plastic wastebaskets, kitchen organization, and step-touch trash cans, including the StepOn and TouchTop mechanisms Sterilite offers. While more design-premium, Simplehuman serves overlapping retail and consumer channels in the same product categories.
• Iris USA: Iris USA is a direct peer producing injection-molded plastic storage containers, bins, totes, and file boxes sold through major US retailers including Walmart, Target, and Amazon. The company competes with Sterilite on overlapping SKUs in clear storage, totes, and office organization.

Broad incumbents

• Newell Brands: Newell Brands is the parent of Rubbermaid and several other housewares brands, giving it a broad incumbent position that overlaps with Sterilite across storage, kitchen, and waste categories. Its scale, brand portfolio (Rubbermaid, Contigo, Sistema), and retail relationships make it a major competitor for Sterilite's shelf space.

Emerging players

• InterDesign: InterDesign produces plastic and metal home organization products including storage bins, drawer organizers, and kitchen solutions. It competes with Sterilite in several adjacent categories and serves overlapping mass and specialty retail channels.
• mDesign (Idea Design Holdings): mDesign is an emerging peer in plastic home organization products including bins, baskets, drawer organizers, and food storage, sold primarily through Amazon and Target. It overlaps with Sterilite's basket, bin, and drawer categories at the same mass and online retailers.

Others

• The Container Store: The Container Store is a specialty retailer of storage and organization products including many plastic housewares. While not a manufacturer peer, it competes at the merchandising level by curating and sometimes private-labeling competing storage products that compete for the same consumer organization spend as Sterilite.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/SteriliteCorporation
• Instagrampinterest.com/sterilite
• Pinterestpinterest.com/sterilite
• Xx.com/SteriliteCorp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sterilite-corporation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sterilite