On today’s episode, we welcome Ann Williams, Founder and Creative Director of Yearly Co. — a Nashville-based fine jewelry brand built around celebrating life’s milestones with timeless, solid 14k gold jewelry.
Yearly Co. started with a family tradition. Inspired by receiving gold bangles to mark meaningful moments, Ann took a metalsmithing class and began making jewelry by hand in her garage during naptime. What started as a second-career experiment in 2016 has grown into an $11.5 million direct-to-consumer business that remains 100% founder-owned and self-funded.
In this episode, Ann shares how she turned a difficult-to-size product into a competitive advantage, why Yearly Co. offers bangles in 11 sizes, how she built loyalty around milestones and repeat purchases, and why she has chosen to grow without outside capital. She also opens up about being diagnosed with breast cancer at 37, keeping the business moving during treatment, and how the experience changed the way she thinks about leadership, motherhood, business, and the moments that really matter.
Such an inspiring founder story. Listen now.

Are you interested in sponsoring and advertising on The Kara Goldin Show, which is now in the Top 1% of Entrepreneur podcasts in the world? Let me know by contacting me atkaragoldin@gmail.com. You can also find me @‌KaraGoldin on all networks.

To learn more about Ann Williams and Yearly Co.:
https://yearlyco.com/
https://www.instagram.com/yearlycompany/
https://www.instagram.com/annbrennanwilliams/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/ann-williams-3437a912

Sponsored By:

Acorns – Head to Acorns.com/KARA or download the Acorns app to get started.

Rippling – Head to Rippling.AI/KaraGoldin and get the only AI to give you full visibility across your business and take complex actions across your entire organization.

CashApp – For a limited time, new customers can get $10 added to their balance. Just use code BITCOIN10 when you sign up, and—don’t forget this part—send at least $5 to a friend in the first two weeks. Terms apply. Cash App is a financial services platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App’s bank partner(s). Bitcoin services provided by Block, Inc. brand. For additional information, see the Bitcoin disclosures at cash.app/legal/podcast.

Kalshi – Download the Kalshi app and use code KARAGOLDIN to get $20 when you trade $20.

Freshbooks – Go to FreshBooks to get FreshBooks for less than $3 a month for your first four months — that’s 90% off.

LinkedIn Jobs – Head to LinkedIn.com/KaraGoldin to post your job for free.

Seed – Go to Seed.com/KARAGOLDIN and use code KARA to get 25% off.

Chime – Join the millions who are already banking fee-free today. Head to Chime.com/KARAGOLDIN.

Check out our website to view this episode’s show notes: https://karagoldin.com/podcast/891