Caroline Sharpnack, Stein Interiors, Yearly Co.
Jessie Manos
Ten years ago, Ann Williams was soldering gold bangles at her kitchen table while raising two children under 2. Today, the Nashville entrepreneur leads an eight-figure jewelry brand built on a simple idea: the jewelry women wear every day should mean something.
Williams founded Yearly Co. in 2016 and has grown her company into a thriving direct-to-consumer business known for its solid 14-karat gold bangles. She designs bracelets to be worn constantly, passed down through generations, and tied to personal milestones.
“Our family history really just is the pride of the business because that’s what started it all,” Williams says.
The story began more than 60 years ago with Williams’ grandparents. Her grandfather gave her grandmother a gold bangle for each wedding anniversary, a tradition that created a stack of bracelets that marked each year of their marriage. When her grandmother died, her family divided the bangles among her children — elevating the shiny gold circles from basic jewelry to family heirlooms.
“The idea that those were on her body and then handed down to her family was just awesome,” Williams says. “Just having that connection physically to the women in our family was so cool.”
MAKING HEIRLOOMS: Years later, after moving from Northern California to Nashville to attend Vanderbilt University, Williams found herself searching for a creative outlet while home with two toddlers. She found a jewelry-making class so she could learn to make the treasured bracelets. But the class didn’t include instructions on how to make them.
Her instructor, Nancie Roark, offered to teach her privately and handed her the torch tool.
“She was like, ‘All right, here you go,’” Williams recalls with a laugh. “And I said, ‘I’ve never used one of these. I don’t know how to do this.’”
The moment she watched the torch’s heat transform the raw metal into a finished bangle; she was hooked.
“You take a piece of wire, you add heat and chemistry, and suddenly it becomes something that’s going to be around for the rest of your life,” she says. “I thought, ‘This is amazing.’”
IT’S ABOUT YOU: Her earliest customers were family members eager to continue the anniversary tradition. Then friends began asking for bangles — and Williams used Instagram to help spread the idea further.
She realized quickly that her design required a precise fit. To solve the problem, she began hand-making brass sizing kits customers could try before ordering their gold bracelets. Today, Yearly Co.’s signature bangles are available in 11 sizes, and the company ships complimentary brass sizing kits to customers across the country.
The bangles remain the brand’s hallmark, but the line has expanded to include heirloom-quality earrings, rings, and necklaces. All pieces are crafted in solid 14-karat gold and backed by a lifetime guarantee.
“It’s actually not about us — it’s about you,” Williams says. “You are the one giving meaning to this piece of jewelry.”
MARKING MILESTONES TO REINVENTION: Customers now use Yearly Co. jewelry to mark everything from marriages and births to personal milestones and reinvention. One early message from a customer reshaped Williams’ perspective on the brand entirely.
“She told me she was celebrating three years since trying to take her own life,” Williams says. “She said she could look down at her wrist and see, ‘I’m this strong. I made it three years.’ I just cried reading that. I realized this was so much bigger than jewelry.”
In 2024, Williams experienced that truth firsthand when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She designed a special bangle with six diamonds to mark her six chemotherapy treatments.
“I didn’t want it to define me,” she says. “But it’s a reminder that this was a hard season I got through."
FROM HER FAMILY TO YOURS: Through the years, Williams has maintained ownership of her company, which has remained completely self-funded. She navigated business complications during the pandemic while maintaining a close connection with the store’s customers and Nashville roots.
As Yearly Co. marks its 10th anniversary, Williams says she’s less interested in quick expansion than in longevity.
“I just want to be a brand with that legacy, long-term sticking factor,” she says. “The woman who bought her first bangle in 2016 should be able to come back in 2026 and keep building her story — and someday pass it down to her daughters.”
Visit Yearly Co. at 4107 Hillsboro Circle in Nashville or online at yearlyco.com.