UnStuck: Rebirth of an American Icon
By Stephanie Stuckey
Dallas: Matt Holt Books, 2024, 2024
Hardcover, 240 pages, $28
Reviewed by Ralph S. Wilcox
As a child whose family made numerous road trips during the 1970s and 1980s, we likely stopped at Stuckey’s during our stays at Holiday Inn and our meals at Howard Johnson’s. I didn’t, however, then take much notice of Stuckey’s and its distinctive buildings. However, that changed while working on listing a Stuckey’s building in the National Register of Historic Places in 2022. I accomplished this with Stephanie Stuckey’s generous assistance, along with documenting the chain’s remaining buildings in Arkansas.
After completing the project, I eagerly delved into Stephanie’s new book, UnStuck: Rebirth of an American Icon. As the granddaughter of Stuckey’s founder, Stephanie brings a unique perspective to the story. Her unconventional background for running a company and her love for road trips promise a fascinating narrative. Stephanie’s diverse background, which includes a law degree and a career as a trial lawyer, a Georgia state representative, and Atlanta’s Director of Sustainability, adds an engaging twist to the narrative.
As the author notes, “This book is a memoir. It is my interpretation of what happened. I have revised some details in the interest of weaving a narrative and have changed some names to protect identities. The story is what matters. That is what is real.”
UnStuck primarily chronicles the history of Stuckey’s, a business that began when W. S. Stuckey, Sr., dropped out of the University of Georgia to help on his father’s farm during the Great Depression in 1931. With a $35 loan from his grandmother and a Model A Ford coupe, he ventured into the business world, buying pecans and making a one-cent per pound profit on his sales. Stuckey’s business flourished, and he expanded by opening a wholesale business in Eastman, Georgia.
These early successes inspired Stuckey to open a roadside stand on U.S. Highway 23 in 1937. Stuckey sold several products besides pecans, including pralines made by his wife, Ethel. She soon added Stuckey’s most famous creation, the pecan log roll, an old family recipe of white molasses, powdered sugar, and roasted pecans.
Stuckey expanded to stores in other Georgia towns along tourist routes and had grown to 29 stores by 1953. Stuckey’s was successful because it combined gas, yummy food, souvenirs, and clean restrooms. The chain’s expansion slowed in the early 1960s, and it was sold in 1964 to PET, Inc., a St. Louis-based dairy products company best known for its evaporated milk, in a $15 million transaction.
W. S. Stuckey became the vice president of Stuckey’s division of PET, and the chain peaked at 350 stores in 45 states. Stuckey took early retirement in 1970, and seven years later, PET was bought by Illinois Central Industries, which neglected the chain. It eventually declined to 75 stores.
In 1985, Billy Stuckey, W. S. Stuckey’s son, and four partners purchased the remaining assets of Stuckey’s, including the trademark, the franchise system, and company-owned stores. Bill ran the Interstate Dairy Queen Corporation and had the franchise rights for DQ stores within a half-mile of the interstate highway system. He aligned the two stores and expanded his namesake business to 100 stores in 23 states by 1998.
Stephanie’s book comprehensively covers this history, and a bonus is the author’s experiences acquiring Stuckey’s in 2019. It vividly portrays the successes and challenges she faced in rebuilding it. For example, Stephanie did hands- on management to operate Stuckey’s manufacturing facility while living in Atlanta with her daughter. The author turned it into a personal success, saying, “Four years of commuting several times a week was an easy sacrifice compared to the struggles of moving a 14-year-old used to city living to a rural town with a population of less than 3,000.”
The author weaves together different storylines, keeping the reader engaged throughout. This format results in a book that should appeal to both roadside enthusiasts and business students, the latter for her practical advice and valuable insights on running the company. For example, Stephanie advises, “It’s vital to debrief after setbacks. It’s the challenges, not the successes, that offer the best guidance in business and in life…. And, most importantly, I learned that doing the right thing is always the right thing, despite how hard it is in the moment of crisis.”
Stephanie’s dedication to reviving her grandfather’s legacy with the brand is palpable in person and in her book. For instance, upon acquiring the company, she traveled to all 68 Stuckey’s locations in 20 states. She aimed to “meet with the owners and staff, talk to customers, and get a boots- on-the-ground understanding of our operations.” She also shares her “Come to Jesus” moment in front of the Stuckey’s in Marion, Arkansas, a building that was unfortunately demolished before it could be documented. Stuckey’s writing style is remarkably accessible throughout the book, even when discussing complex business concepts. This quality may stem from her non- business background, making the book feel like a personal conversation over a cup of coffee at a local diner. The reader is invited to share in her story, a feeling further enhanced by photographs, many of which are from the company’s archives.
UnStuck is an excellent addition to the library of roadside history, covering all phases of the iconic roadside chain’s evolution. Her first-hand knowledge of the company and access to her grandfather’s papers is priceless. The book’s business advice reminds me of Becoming Trader Joe: How I Did Business My Way and Still Beat the Big Guys by Joe Coulombe, which is about the Trader Joe’s grocery chain. It’s another book I would highly recommend—like UnStuck.
Ralph S. Wilcox is the National Register and Survey Coordinator and Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer for the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program and a previous member of SCA’s Board of Directors.
This book review originally appeared in the SCA Journal, Fall 2024, Vol. 42, No. 2. The SCA Journal is a semi-annual publication and a member benefit of the Society for Commercial Archeology.
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