She's My Superwoman: Kueh Ho Jiak's Mother-Daughter Duo On Teaming Up To Reinvent Tradition
Mother's Day Special: We shine the spotlight on mother-daughter duos in business
By Michelle Lee SM -
The relationships between mothers and daughters can come with many challenges. But what about when they actually team up to run their own businesses? This Mother's Day, the Weekly speaks to five mother-daughter duos who have combined their talents and expertise to pursue their passions and create a thriving business.
Amidst the deluge of "trendy" foods and Western sweets such as Basque burnt cheesecakes, gelato and the like, traditional snacks like Nonya kueh are often forgotten, especially with younger folk.
Not for local kueh maker Kueh Ho Jiak, which gives these old-school snacks a fun modern spin with cute, colourful iterations and interesting flavours — think fresh durian, fresh cempedak, and chendol.
They aren't just cute too — Kueh Ho Jiak's confections are made healthier by using sweet potato dough and are free of preservatives and artificial colouring.
It's helmed by Sandy Tan, 56, and her daughter Elizabeth Chan, 32, who started the business in 2010. After the passing of her husband when Elizabeth was one, Sandy flew to Australia to work in a bid to provide for her daughter while the latter was cared for by her grandmother in Singapore. It wasn't until the birth of Elizabeth's daughter that Sandy returned for good.
Starting with a home-based business, Sandy's delicious kueh became a hit through word-of-mouth. And it wasn't long before Elizabeth, who then helped out while running her own curtain business, decided she had to make a choice. A year later, she jumped on board to turn it into a full-fledged business and Kueh Ho Jiak was born.
The two shed the light on toeing the fine line of their relationship as mother and child while navigating the intricacies of running a business.
Elizabeth Chan (EC): Yes, the whole family is involved, even my daughter. Our business is also about female empowerment and both my mom and I have tough, dominant characters. We're also both single mothers - my dad passed away when I was a year old. The business is what brings our family together.
“We do things together, and we make plans together. There are arguments but at the end of the day, this is something that unites us." - Elizabeth Chan
EC: We got to understand each other better. I helm the sales and business management aspect, but I have to understand what goes on in the kitchen (which is under my mum) as well, and vice versa. Having lived apart for so many years, miscommunication happened and we had our fair share of thrashing things out.
But through it all, it's actually built our relationship and we learnt how to work and communicate with each other. We learnt what each other boundaries are, what we don’t like, and how not to step on each other’s tail.
Sandy Tan (ST): To see Elizabeth working hard. She always gives her best in what she does.