Stephanie Edwards touches the world through Jubilee Trading Co.’s faith-centered mission
Stephanie Edwards stands in the stock room at Jubilee Trading Co., which operates with the mission of creating “life-transforming employment globally and locally, offering a fresh start for many,” says Edwards.
LAWRENCEBURG — Stephanie Edwards navigates rows of tall, unfinished wooden shelves, touching the world with each reach into one of the hundreds of cardboard boxes filled with exotic goods.
Quality-stitched leather purses from North Africa, decorative canvas banners from East Africa, handmade slippers from West Asia, cotton towels from Turkey, and ornate artisan jewelry from East Asia line the shelves.
Lawrenceburg, a quaint town in Middle Tennessee just north of the Alabama state line, may seem distant from the global stage. Yet, stepping into Jubilee Trading Company’s cozy retail storefront, a few blocks from the historic town square, feels like a stroll around the globe.
“The name comes from the Year of Jubilee,” said Edwards, 35, Jubilee’s owner and a member of First Baptist Church Lawrenceburg. “It was a time of redemption and restoration. Our mission is to create life-transforming employment globally and locally, offering a fresh start for many we work with.”
Jubilee is a nonprofit that sells handmade goods that “make the world a better place,” with ministry at its core. Internationally, Edwards partners with local Christians in multiple countries to create goods sold through Jubilee’s website.
The revenue empowers them to earn a living while funding sustainable gospel outreach.
Locally, Edwards employs at-risk women in the retail storefront and warehouse, fulfilling orders for shipping. For example, one employee, a single mother, found stability and purpose through Jubilee, rebuilding her life while packaging goods for customers.
Her global vision took root early. Edwards’ journey began with salvation and baptism at age 6 at First Baptist Church, Decherd, Tenn. A childhood fascination with National Geographic sparked her curiosity for distant places.
Stephanie Edwards is well-traveled to say the least. She studied abroad in Australia and joined mission trips to Haiti, the Dominican Republic and New York City.
“I think I was just born curious,” she said. “I was that kid who collected National Geographic magazines. I remember it began with my second-grade teacher. She let us clip pictures out of them to make collages and stuff. My interest just grew from there. God wired me that way.”
Pictures fueled her global perspective, but hard work shaped her business acumen. Edwards grew up on a 2,000-acre family farm in Estill Springs, Tenn., driving tractors and working in tobacco and corn fields. Her father’s entrepreneurial spirit influenced her through Granddaddy’s Farm Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch, where Edwards and her brothers, “put skin in the game,” financially investing with their parents and sharing profits, along with the work.
“My daddy raised me where we weren’t given anything,” Edwards said.
“There was no allowance. There was always work to do. We’d strip tobacco in November after school and go through the fields pulling worms off tobacco leaves. Mom and dad always wanted us to know how [business] worked.”
Majoring in journalism at the University of Tennessee, Edwards deepened her interests in social justice and missions. She studied abroad in Australia and joined mission trips to Haiti, the Dominican Republic and New York City; with further travels through Peru, Vietnam, Cambodia and Europe.
Her passions merged in 2019 with the launch of her second e-commerce business, selling artisan goods online from her attic. “I had a standard,” Edwards said.
“I wanted something that was polished; something people would want. I felt like God gave me the green light to involve other people, so I sent like 40 emails out to everyone I had connected with around the world and asked, ‘Hey, do you know somebody in your network that makes a thing and just needs someone in the United States to sell it?’”
Stephanie Edwards, right, shows off one of the quality-stitched items that is available at her store front outside of historic downtown Lawrenceburg. The store is called Jubilee Trading Company.
She finally connected with a North African believer who crafted fine leather goods. “It was a God connection,” she said. His goods became Jubilee’s cornerstone product, with Edwards as his primary buyer, accounting for 98 percent of his sales. The income supported his family, an employee and gospel outreach in a Muslim-majority area less receptive to Western missionaries.
“Work gives people dignity, value, and meaning,” Edwards said. “It’s more sustainable than one-time charity. Charity is important, but creating work creates sustainable opportunities.”
Jubilee’s growth has been organic and providential, this year expanding into Kenya with four more employees and adding more locally sourced goods.
“I still haven’t processed all that’s happened,” Edwards said.
“The growth has been mind-boggling,” said Jeff Vanlandingham, pastor of First Baptist Church Lawrenceburg. “Watching Stephanie and her husband, Charlie, navigate God’s work in their lives is inspiring. God’s plans are far more impactful than they could have imagined.”
Pausing among the warehouse shelves, Edwards reflected. “It’s unbelievable and overwhelming at times. I thank God for His big plan. I could never have pieced this together.”
With that, she reaches into another box, touching the world. B&R
