An Inspired Chat with Jason and Stacey Posey of Midtown

We recently had the chance to connect with Jason and Stacey Posey and have shared our conversation below.

Jason and Stacey , really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
One of the most incredible parts of what we do at Southern Oak Trading is seeing how deeply our pieces connect with people. It’s more than just jewelry — it’s memory, emotion, and legacy wrapped into something they can hold.

So often, customers see a piece and immediately think of a loved one — a grandmother’s vintage brooch, a father’s old watch, a mother’s favorite gemstone. You can see it in their eyes when that memory hits — a spark of emotion, sometimes even tears — and it’s a reminder that what we create carries real meaning.

It’s truly special that something we’ve designed with care and intention can stir memories, tell stories, and even become heirlooms. That’s not just business — that’s art with heart. 💛

We create with that in mind and are really proud to be able to do this and be a prt of people’s joureys in life.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are a married team behind Southern Oak Trading, and our story is rooted in a shared love for creativity, travel, and the art of craftsmanship. Jay’s background spans the music and fashion worlds—he spent years as a DJ playing across the globe, ran a successful streetwear clothing line called Atlast Clothing, and owned a nightclub in East Atlanta Village for over a decade. He has always been drawn to style and jewelry as forms of self-expression.

Stacey comes from four generations of traders—antiques, clothing, and jewelry have always been in her blood. Her family owned trading posts, and her father was a fashion designer, so the world of design and collecting has been part of her life since childhood. Together, we merge our passions—Jay’s streetstyle and music roots with Stacey’s heritage in antiques and design—along with our love for traveling and history to create jewelry that tells a story.

Our work is a blend of the old and the new: we hand-forge many of our pieces using time-honored methods—Jay still stamps designs into metal using antique tools, rebar, and even a tree stump as his base. Many of our creations incorporate vintage elements we’ve sourced from markets and travels around the world, while others are original designs that pay homage to the true form of craftsmanship. The result is jewelry that feels soulful, rugged, and deeply connected to both history and modern style. That combination of heritage, artistry, and adventure is what makes Southern Oak Trading so unique

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
Honestly, our marriage has shaped so much of how we see ourselves and our work. We’ve built Southern Oak Trading together, and it’s been this ongoing collaboration of two very different but complementary perspectives. Jay comes from music, nightlife, and street culture; Stacey comes from generations of traders and makers. When we combine those worlds, we push each other creatively—he’ll dream big on design, she’ll bring in the history and soul—and somewhere in the middle is where the magic happens. It’s less about romance in the traditional sense and more about building something side by side that reflects both of us.

And then there are our customers. They constantly validate what we feel deep down—that jewelry is emotional. It marks moments, carries memories, and tells people’s stories. When someone writes to us saying a piece we made became part of their wedding day, or a keepsake after a loss, or even just something that makes them feel like themselves again—that’s when we realize this is more than metal and stones. It’s a shared journey between us as makers and them as wearers, and it’s the most rewarding part of what we do.

What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
Like everyone, we’ve had our share of defining wounds—personally, creatively, and in business. What’s shaped us most is learning to see those cracks not as flaws but as part of the story. That’s why we’re so drawn to the well-loved pieces we find—the weathered silver, the cracked stones, the ones that have clearly lived a life. There’s a spiritual element to that for us, like in so many cultures, the belief that every object carries the energy of its journey. These pieces are warriors, scarred but beautiful, and in a way they mirror our own paths as humans. Our customers remind us of that every day when they tell us how a piece marks a birth, a loss, a love, a transformation. Creating jewelry that holds that kind of meaning has been part of our healing too—it turns the hard parts of life into something lasting and beautiful

Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What’s a belief or project you’re committed to, no matter how long it takes?
For us, it’s perfecting our craft—no matter how long it takes. Every piece we make is in homage to those who came before us: the silversmiths, the traders, the artists who shaped this work long before we ever picked up a hammer. We’re carrying that lineage forward, slowly, deliberately, learning as we go, because honoring the tradition means never rushing the process. The goal isn’t perfection in the modern sense—it’s staying true to the spirit, the history, and the hands that taught us what this craft could be.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
We hope the story people tell isn’t about what we said, but what we made. The heirloom pieces we’ve crafted—and the vintage ones we’ve been lucky enough to cross paths with—will carry that story on their own. Every ring, every pendant, every weathered stone becomes a step in its journey, long after we’re gone. We want people to feel that we honored the craft, the history, and the lives these pieces touched along the way

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/southernoaktrading

Image Credits
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