Building a legacy: How Kansas City’s entrepreneurial giant, Greg Maday, built success on relationships and trust

For Greg Maday. B.S.B.A. ’86, business has always been about the relationships. 

Not long after graduating from college, Maday took a job as a commercial mortgage broker, serving as the intermediary who helped individuals and investors secure loans for their business or commercial uses. He excelled at his role. Yet, once a loan was finalized, the relationship ended—leaving Maday yearning for deeper, more enduring connections with his clients.

Everything shifted when he transitioned into a manufacturing company. There, he found himself not only selling business supplies but also building long-lasting bonds with a loyal customer base. It was the ongoing engagement he had been craving.

“That’s when I hit my sweet spot,” Maday said. “My customers are my best buddies. If you do it right, working doesn’t feel like work.”

Those enduring relationships became the cornerstone of Maday’s successful career as an entrepreneur and businessman. 

Today, he is the long-serving chairman and CEO of SpecChem, LLC, a leading manufacturer of concrete-related building products based in Kansas City. He co-founded the company nearly 20 years ago with his friend and prior associates Mike Shull, Mike LeMark, John Love, Colin Buchanan and Frank Lichtenaur. Shull currently serves as the company’s president. Maday’s influence extends beyond SpecChem, as he is also a co-owner of Sporting Kansas City, the professional soccer club he acquired in 2006 alongside Cliff Illig, the late Neal Patterson, Pat Curran, Robb Heineman and fellow Mizzou alum, Dave French. Formerly known as the Kansas City Wizards, the club has flourished under their leadership and Kansas City has become a global center for soccer.

Additionally, Maday co-founded and co-owns Homefield Kansas City, state-of-the-art sporting facilities that serve local athletes and are at the heart of an $838 million redevelopment project at the former Schlitterbahn Waterpark in Wyandotte County. He also remains a founding member of Rock Island Capital, a private equity firm he co-founded in 2005.

“Relationships are everything,” he emphasized. “People do business with those they trust, and trust comes from strong relationships.”

A hunger to succeed

Maday, the youngest of three, grew up in a modest duplex in St. Joseph, Missouri. His parents, having married young, divorced when he was four. Both later remarried, and each welcomed a daughter to their new families.

When he was a boy, Maday’s family didn’t have a television. He can vividly remember racing to a neighbor’s house in the summer of 1969 to watch Neil Armstrong take the historic first steps on the moon. He also remembers drinking powdered milk and riding the city bus on a regular basis. 

"Growing up, I always felt loved and didn’t realize that we didn’t have much, because it was all I knew,” Maday said. “But when we moved to a new neighborhood, I saw that the bankers' kids had nice things, and that’s when I learned something important: if you get a job, work hard and have a little luck, you can have those things, too. I had a little hunger to succeed.”

When it came time for college, Maday's father and stepfather agreed to split the cost. There was never any doubt about where he would go: Mizzou.

“I thought it was the coolest school, and my friends were going there,” Maday said. He joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, which he credits with providing him valuable guidance. “The fraternity was good for me because older students gave me advice, and we had study hall every night. I still remember our study hall monitor from my freshman year — an engineering student who helped me with algebra, calculus and trigonometry. It was in college that I really learned how to study, and as a result, I did much better academically than I ever did in high school.”

Maday knew early on that he wanted to major in business and eventually focused on finance. Throughout his time at Mizzou, he worked various jobs, including at the Missouri Theatre and the now-defunct Eastgate liquor store.

“The best part of my time at Mizzou was the friendships I made,” he said.

Make your own luck

Maday’s first job after graduating from college was as a runner, trading winter wheat at the Kansas City Board of Trade. He landed the role thanks to a connection his parents had with the president of the KC Board of Trade. However, the job only paid $8 an hour, and the wheat pit was only open for six hours a day.

“I was earning just $48 a weekday, and after six months on the job, I couldn’t afford my rent,” Maday recalled.

His fortune began to change when he accepted a position with a manufacturing company. By his late 30s, Maday and his wife of 33 years, Liz, had already grown one company tenfold, sold it and launched another, earning a spot in Ingram’s 40 Under Forty Class of 2002. In the years that followed, Maday launched several businesses, some of which he remains actively involved, including SpecChem, Sporting Kansas City, Homefield KC and Rock Island Capital. 

Maday has also given back to his community by serving on boards that support the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, UMB Bank, The American Royal Association, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art and the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. He is also served for more than 10 years on the Dean’s Advisory Board for the Trulaske College of Business. 

“I think it’s important to step up and serve as leaders in the community,” he said.

The Golden Rule

Throughout his career, Maday has remained steadfast in his belief that relationships are essential in business, especially when choosing the right partners. It’s also important to offer a product that people truly want and need. As his old friend and former Sporting Kansas City partner, Patterson used to say: “Be sure the dogs will eat the dog food.”

“Whenever someone pitches me a new deal, I ask: ‘Will the dogs eat the dog food?’” Maday said. “It’s best business advice I ever got.”

Finally, he believes in the Golden Rule: treat people in the same way that you would want to be treated.

“It’s important to do the right thing by people,” Maday said. “I remember when I sold my first business, I was told I was paying my people too much. I wouldn’t change that. It’s important to treat people with respect and dignity.”

He also values surrounding himself with talented individuals.

“Some people get intimidated by hiring people who are smarter than they are,” he said. “Are you kidding me?! I have limitations, but I still have this insatiable desire to work and compete. So, I hire great people, give them credit and pay them responsibility.”

Mizzou made

Today, Maday’s children work for SpecChem, including his son Max, a graduate of the Trulaske College of Business. As a family, they share a love for golfing, attending sporting events and traveling together. In the evenings, when Maday returns home from work, he often fires up the grill to unwind and enjoy barbecuing. 

Maday credits his experience at Mizzou with laying the foundation to pursue his dreams and instilling a drive to never give up.

“Trulaske taught me how to learn and think for myself,” he said. “It also showed me that it was my responsibility to seek out opportunities and turn them into something positive. It was a place where you created lasting relationships which connected you to the real-world workplace. As a fresh graduate, the world didn’t owe me anything, but it offered me a door to endless opportunities.”