When Sarah Johnson was a teenager, she tried a raw vegan diet. "This is not the plant-based campaign we are developing now," she said. "All [vegans] usually taste like cardboard, so I decided that if I want to eat something delicious, I need to make it myself." So Johnson made a creamy almond vegan dip. Years later, when she started selling dipping sauces at the local farmer’s market, which was well received, Johnson realized that she could start a business around her recipes.

More than a decade later, Cichin' Sauce is expected to sell more than 7 million barrels of sauce at 10,000 retailers across the country. When the childcare industry is understaffed and affected by the epidemic, and many working parents are at a loss, Tzu Qingjiang provides its employees with a rare benefit: free home childcare services. The company also pays competitive wages to childcare workers and provides the same benefits to other employees.

Johnson talked to Fast Company about why she started providing childcare benefits and the impact of this on retention rates, especially during the pandemic. This interview has been edited for clarity and space.

"Being my current mother is really important to me"
I think the issue of parenting is indeed an important part of our brand DNA. This is my son in the Cichin' Sauce bathtub. He was only one and a half years old when I started Tzu Qingjiang. The main purpose of my own business was to support my family, but I didn't want to have a beautiful child that I would never see. So being my current mother is really important to me.

Cichin' Sauce gives us incredible flexibility. We have to take him to the kitchen every day and he is by our side. We basically mark the team-mom or dad looks at him, makes sure he is taken care of, and then the other person tries to make the sauce and [do] whatever needs to happen. I really like that. I think this is a great thing, at least he knows that we have been in his life. And I really don’t want others to have to make the choice: Do I go to work at a price of $15 an hour, and then I have to pay directly to the daycare provider? Or should I stay at home and try to do it myself, risking no income from my family?

三和一善

Two years ago, we expanded the footprint of the manufacturing plant. The first thing I decided is that I want to have Cichin’ Kids. We will be open to employees who have babies and need them to go during the day. Everything is in order. We have an amazing childcare director. She is a friend of the family and she is looking for a position. I thought, ‘I have a good position-let’s achieve this goal. ’

In addition, my chief of staff put it together is great. An interesting story about how I hired her: She is a high school volleyball coach, she is pregnant with her second child and will be born in two weeks, I [said], you should come and work for me. She said, ‘I’m going to give birth. ’I said, ‘that’s better! Bring your baby; it will be great. "She played an important role in making this project fruitful.

"Last quarter, our turnover reached 5%"
[Cichin' Kids] has basically been growing because we see more demand for it. Last year, we enrolled the same number of children, but we started to see them more frequently. We did not see these children after school, but saw them all day long. We have brought in people who will help tutor the children [and] make sure they take the Zoom course. We have a bunch of new Cichin' babies, so we have brought more people who can hold little ones. There are indeed many babies there now.

I think we may have been closed for a total of two weeks. But we are considered an essential business in California, so we did not completely shut down, [our employees] really had no choice. Due to the pandemic, their options have become more limited, and like their family members who usually call to help, they also try to keep their distance. Therefore, having a place where you can still take care of your children is a huge benefit for people.

Our turnover last quarter was 5%, which is incredible based on this national average. We usually hover below 10%. I think one of the things we have been working on, I think other companies are also working hard to recruit and develop during this time. At first, our chief of staff came to me and said, “It’s difficult for us to find anyone interested in this.” I told her, “Write in capital letters'free child care' on your post and see what happens. ." Then, a large number of people poured in. This is completely different for them.

"Everyone touts work-life balance-this is one of the most important forms of it"
I think many [companies] care about finances, but this is not a burden at all. This is just a blessing, we have very efficient employees. We don't want to profit from the Cichin' Kids program. This is just an opportunity to take better care of our employees-we just see higher productivity. Since we founded Cichin’ Kids, we have had the most profitable year, even during the pandemic.

The past year was a year of regression for women in the workplace. And I think smart companies will realize that instead of limiting their talent pool, they should provide something that can achieve an overall work-life balance. Everyone touts work-life balance-this is one of the most important forms. Can you take care of family and work? If people can find a way to do this, whether it's subsidizing external care or doing it internally as we do, I think it will ultimately be in the best interest of the company.