Good Guy CEO Pays For His Workers’ Weddings and Offers Free College Tuition to Their Kids

July 6, 2016

Marcel Graham broke down in tears when his boss, Chieh Huang, announced that his wedding will be covered by the company.

Such is unusual for most employees — a far-fetched perk that is, needless to say, a dream come true. With his mother needing medical bills, Graham juggled responsibilities. He came to a point of despair and cried at work, The Huffington Post wrote.

Chieh Huang, CEO of Boxed

Boxed CEO Huang reached out to his employee to figure out what’s going on, and from that moment, things took a better turn. He requested for the presence of Graham’s fiancée, Tara Aucoin, at work, where he made the announcement: a wedding subsidy of $20,000 for everyone.

Huang gathers everyone for the announcement

But Boxed is not just about sponsored weddings. In 2015, the online retailer announced that it will shoulder full college tuition fees for its employees’ children. To date, it has paid the tuition of five students, one of which is attending Brown University in fall.

Aucoin (in light pink coat) and Graham await for Huang’s announcement

Huang’s decision stems from his belief that free snacks get old, and that there are more important things in life. He told The Huffington Post, “I just want to do the stuff that really matters.”

“Even if we doubled wages, they wouldn’t be able to pay [for college and weddings],” the 34-year-old exec added. Boxed, dubbed as a Costco-like vendor, has most of its employees render time in fulfillment centers. Graham, a packer, is one of them, and they make an average of $14 every hour.

In addition, they get similar benefits as salary-basis employees, health insurance being one. But what’s even more surprising are unlimited sick, parental and vacation times!

The couple’s reaction after Huang’s announcement

Huang points that it’s all about trust, “You don’t want to be the person that messes it up for everyone. You can’t, like, fuck off to Nepal for six weeks without telling anyone.”

Graham is set to get married in November, Entrepreneur noted. He said in a press release, “It was overwhelming, that Boxed would pay for my wedding. I was in tears, and so was my fiancée. It just makes me feel that they appreciate my work here.”

The rest erupt in cheers as Huang announced the perk’s availability for everyone

Watch the video below:

Wedding BoxedSOUND ON! Just how did this whole Boxed paying for weddings unfold? We captured the BIG reveal on tape! Watch till the end (+ catch our CEO Chieh with a special message)!

Posted by Boxed on Wednesday, May 25, 2016

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