Industry & Business: Stuckey’s

By Kathy Roberts

For those of us of a certain age, the teal blue roof known to generations of travelers in America in the 1960s and 70s, could only mean one thing: Stuckey’s — the roadside store that seemingly appeared out of nowhere along a desolate expanse of many of our major highways. It was an oasis of Georgia-made pecan treats complete with diner food, clean bathrooms, kitschy souvenirs, and plenty of gas.

“Our roots in Georgia run deep,” says co-owner Stephanie Stuckey, granddaughter of W.S. “Sylvester” Stuckey, founder of the iconic roadside retail store. “We were founded in 1937 in Eastman by my grandfather with a $35 loan as a roadside pecan stand. He sold pecans, honey, and souvenirs from local farmers and producers.

“My grandmother, Ethel, started making and selling old-fashioned candy, including our iconic pecan log roll.”

Stephanie Stuckey has had a long and varied career — public servant, Georgia state representative for 12 years, director of sustainability for the City of Atlanta, running an environmental nonprofit, and law teacher at the University of Georgia. But she never imagined she’d add “reviver of an iconic brand” and business owner to her resume.

Yet fate has a funny way of intervening in people’s lives, and in 2019, Stuckey had an unexpected opportunity to buy her grandfather’s company, 55 years after he sold it and moved it out of South Georgia’s Dodge County.

“I saw it as a brand worth saving,” says Stuckey. “My grandfather sold the company when I was a little girl, and it declined after decades of outside ownership and mismanagement.”

In 1948, Stuckey’s pecan goods production was moved from the family’s small candy kitchen to a plant in Eastman, which also served as the distribution center. As the business grew, Sylvester started his own trucking company, sign-painting company, distribution center, and candy plant. It was a brilliant vertical integration that allowed him to meet the country’s first generation of highway travelers with an experience and unique pecan log rolls they couldn’t find elsewhere.

In 1964, Stuckey’s merged with Pet Milk Co., which brought much-needed capital to continue the business’s growth. Pet sold the company in the 1970s to Illinois Central Industries, a railroad conglomerate. Then two major oil crises (1973 and 1979) slowed road travel to a trickle. By the end of the decade, stores were being closed.

In 1984, W.S. “Billy” Stuckey, Jr., son of the founder and five-term Congressman from Georgia’s 8th district, acquired Stuckey’s to turn the company around. He launched the Stuckey’s Express concept, creating the “store within the store,” and expanded to over 165 locations in 17 states.

The Great Recession in 2009, however, forced the company to shut down its Eastman candy plant, ceding production to outside vendors.

Then Stephanie Stuckey stepped in. She worked with UGA’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) to create the company’s first business and marketing plans, which also included a merger plan with R.G. Lamar’s Front Porch brand pecans.

The plans led to the purchase of a 46,000-square-foot facility in Wrens, 90 minutes southeast of Athens, to serve as Stuckey’s candy factory and corporate headquarters.

Lamar, a third-generation pecan farmer with a few thousand acres in Hawkinsville, assumed the role of president and CEO. Within six months of the acquisition, the company became modestly profitable.

Despite her broad professional experience, Stuckey says it’s been a daunting task to get the business back on its feet. “It’s been very challenging. Even though we started with a well-known brand, it was dusty and faded and associated only with our old roadside retail store,” she says. “We had to figure out how to make money without many assets.”

“We’re focusing on the brand as a consumer brand that’s everything pecans — pecan log rolls, pecan snacks, pecan pieces, and flavored versions — and all of those pecans come from local farmers, many from South Georgia.”

The company has a candy shop on Main Street in Wrens and distributes to more than 3,500 retail outlets.

Production and packaging were also out of Wrens in the company’s plant, which employed 35 year-round employees,
increasing to 65 during the holidays. “We love being part of a rural community,” Stuckey says. “But it puts a squeeze on meeting demand.”

Stuckey recently announced operations will be moving to Southwest Georgia and ceasing manufacturing, although the retail shop in Wrens will continue to operate, selling Georgia-made candies made with Georgia-grown pecans as it has since 1937.

“We believe our future is in selling snacks to third-party retailers such as gas stations, grocery stores, and specialty outlets,” Stuckey says.

While Lamar runs day-to-day operations, Stuckey spends time on the road promoting the brand, going to trade shows and telling the story of this once- and soon-to-be-famous-again brand. She’s the company’s lead marketer and is an in-demand speaker.

In 2024, Stuckey released her memoir, UnStuck: Rebirth of an American Icon, which delves deeper into the Stuckey’s story.

“I’ve been surprised by how hard it is to run a company, but I’d do it over in a heartbeat,” she says. “I love telling the Stuckey’s comeback story.”

“And I love making an impact on people’s lives and carrying on my grandfather’s legacy.”

Learn more about Stuckey’s at stuckeys.com.