She Bought Back Her Family's Legacy: The Story of Stephanie Stuckey and the Return of an American Icon
Some business stories are about ambition. Some are about opportunity.
And then there's Stephanie Stuckey's story — which is about something much harder to define. Call it love. Call it loyalty. Call it the pull of a family legacy too important to let disappear.
We've been proud partners with Stuckey's since 2022 — but Stephanie actually sought us out as far back as 2020, drawn by our shared belief that Georgia-made products deserve a bigger spotlight. That relationship has only deepened over the years and today Stuckey's products are featured across multiple Georgia Crafted gift boxes.
Here's the story behind the brand — and the remarkable woman who brought it back from the brink.
It Started With $35 and a Dream
In the 1930s, having borrowed $35 from his grandmother and a car from a friend, W.S. Stuckey Sr. drove around the Eastman, Georgia countryside buying pecans from local farmers and selling them to processors.
By 1937 the treats proved so popular that the couple took a gamble on their first brick-and-mortar store. Through the post-World War II auto boom, Stuckey's grew into a roadside empire that numbered more than 350 stores at its peak in 1971.
For generations of American families, Stuckey's was known as a highway oasis serving up pecan log rolls, rubber alligators and snow globes. If you grew up in the South, you know the feeling — spotting that sign on the highway and knowing something good was coming.
But then the company was sold. And slowly, painfully, one of Georgia's most beloved brands faded.
Enter Stephanie
In late 2019, Stephanie purchased Stuckey's Corporation — the iconic roadside stop famous for its pecan candies and kitschy souvenirs that her grandfather founded in 1937 — and became the third-generation CEO of the family business. Her motivating factors were simple: an emotional attachment to the family brand and an unwavering desire to make Stuckey's both profitable and a household name again.
What she inherited was a brand in serious trouble. What she brought to it was something no outside corporate owner ever could — a granddaughter's love for what her family had built.
Stephanie received both her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Georgia. She worked as a trial lawyer, was elected to seven terms as a state representative, ran an environmental law firm, served as Director of Sustainability for the City of Atlanta and taught as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Georgia School of Law.
In other words — she was wildly overqualified to run a pecan stand. And exactly the right person to save one. 😄
The Turnaround
Under her leadership Stuckey's purchased a pecan-shelling and candy-manufacturing facility in Wrens, Georgia, revamped its distribution operations, rebranded its products and website, added new franchised stores, expanded its retail customer base and increased online sales by 550% — all while weathering the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sales of Stuckey's pecan snacks and sweets have grown from $2 million to $14 million. Retail outlets selling Stuckey's products have increased from several hundred to several thousand — including Ingles, Hobby Lobby and Food Lion.
Stephanie has been named one of the Most Admired CEOs by the Atlanta Business Chronicle, one of the 100 Most Influential Georgians by Georgia Trend Magazine and was inducted into the Junior Achievement of Georgia Hall of Fame in 2025.
Not bad for someone who — by her own admission — had no entrepreneurial experience when she took over. 🍑
Why Georgia Crafted is Proud to Partner with Stuckey's
When Stephanie first reached out to us in 2020, I'll be honest — I hesitated. I wasn't sure I fully understood what she was building behind the scenes or where Stuckey's was headed. Looking back, I wish I had paid closer attention sooner.
By 2022 I had seen enough to know that what Stephanie was doing was extraordinary — and we officially began our partnership that year. Today I couldn't be prouder to carry her products or tell her story.
Because what Stephanie was doing all along was exactly what Georgia Crafted was built to support: a Georgia woman fighting to bring a Georgia icon back to life through quality, authenticity and an unshakeable pride in where these products come from.
Today you'll find Stuckey's products across several of our most beloved gift boxes and sold individually on our site:
- 🟡 Stuckey's Kettle Glazed Candied Pecans — handmade in small batches
- 🟡 Stuckey's Sea Salt Toasted Pecans — hand tossed, Georgia Grown
- 🍺 Stuckey's Pecan Root Beer — crafted in Eastman, Georgia
- 🍬 Stuckey's Original Pecan Log Roll — a Southern road trip icon since 1937
Two Georgia Women. One Shared Mission.
What strikes us most about Stephanie Stuckey isn't the turnaround numbers or the national press coverage — it's that she bought back her family's legacy because it mattered. Because some things are worth fighting for.
That's a story we recognize at Georgia Crafted. And it's why this partnership means so much to us.
"From our family to yours" — that could be Stuckey's tagline. It's ours too. 🍑