Retail & CPG

How a 1930’s pecan candy company is turning heads on TikTok

When Stephanie set out to build back the company, she knew the way forward was storytelling. To engage with the right demographic and get her story out, she knew social media would be the key to success.

“Social media has been a game changer for Stuckey’s,” says Stephanie. “I think for all small businesses, it’s the great equalizer.”

When Stephanie first started out, she had almost no experience with social media. She knew Stuckey's more than anyone else, so she started out by simply committing to post content consistently every single day. 

“By posting every day, I grew a following,” says Stephanie. “And I am by no means an expert in social, but Hootsuite brought the resources I needed to the table and became an extension of my team.” 

Using Hootsuite Analytics, Stephanie discovered that the best performing posts were the ones that weaved in the history of Stuckey’s. Stephanie doubled down on the nostalgia around the Stuckey’s brand, especially on her LinkedIn account, where she consistently tells compelling stories about her journey—and has grown her following to over 100,000 in less than two years.

“Hootsuite Analytics allows me to look at my metrics every week and understand what post got the most engagement and why,” she explains. “And then I do more of that and do it better. That’s how I’ve gone from 200 LinkedIn followers to almost 100,000 in less than two years.”

After touring old Stuckey’s locations, Stephanie realized just how much work she had to do to completely turn around the company. There were old Stuckey’s buildings that hadn’t been touched in decades. Her social presence was cheery and upbeat, and didn’t reflect the blood, sweat and tears she was putting in to turn the company around. So she posted a photo on LinkedIn of what the store actually looked like with the caption, “Stuckey’s is a fixer upper, and our company needs a lot of TLC, and I’m determined to bring this company around.”

After posting, she received the usual 20 or so likes. Within an hour, that number hit a thousand. And within a month, Stephanie had reached a million people with this single post.

“That’s when I knew I was on to something and that’s when I really started gaining traction,” she says. “It’s sharing the honest journey with your audience, being yourself and being real.”

As her engagement skyrocketed, Stephanie started connecting with C-suite level connections through LinkedIn, opening up her business to more opportunities. One day, she posted on LinkedIn about how Stuckey’s pecans used to be on Delta flights, and how great it would be if they were an in-flight snack again. The next day, she received an email from the CEO of Delta about the post.

“Social media really is the great equalizer—you can connect with high-level CEOs that you never thought were attainable,” she says. “If you’re a small, scrappy comeback brand and your message is right and consistent, and you’re using tools like Hootsuite to help you along the way, you can absolutely get to that next level.” 

Stephanie’s goal for the company she has called “an 80-year-old startup” is to be the go-to brand for pecans in the US. With online sales increasing 750% in two years and a growing base of loyal fans, Stuckey’s is making a comeback and well on its way to becoming just that. 

“Pecans are the only nut native to America, and you don’t see pecans in the snack aisles of grocery or convenience stores,” she says. “I want to turn that around. Not only do I want the pecan to have its rightful place on America’s snack aisles, I want it to be Stuckey’s pecan snacks.”