George Lay had worked for two local sign companies: one before and the second after his service in World War II.
He also started a side gig – silk-screening real estate signs in his garage – which turned into a full-time job when he opened George Lay Signs in 1954.
“The early days were largely driven by the post-war housing boom, working for realtors, developers and home builders,” says president John Lay, George’s son. “We also did a lot of work for Coca-Cola and 7-Up and their restaurant customers. Dad also built highway billboards during the 1960s before shifting into electric signs. Our largest customers during the 1970s, ’80s and ’90s were gas stations and convenience stores, due to relationships with Wichita-based Derby and Vickers and their successor companies.”
John Lay began working at his dad’s company during summers in high school and college, and joined the company full-time in 1979. He became company president after George’s death in 1991.
“I worked closely with my dad for 12 years, and we often disagreed on business decisions,” John says. “But, years later, I can better understand why he did things as he did.”
John says a reward of being a family-owned company is being able to make quick decisions.
“On a daily basis, we’re able to make decisions without going through multiple levels of management, which helps us stay competitive and relevant in the local market,” he says. “I can also see how business decisions made 10, 20, 30 and 40 years ago have continued to serve us well today.”… https://www.bizjournals.com/wichita/news/2020/03/06/family-business-awards-into-eighth-decade-familys.html
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In 1955, George Lay decided to quit his job designing neon signs for Wichita’s leading sign company to start his own sign painting business. Of course, his former boss was convinced that George would return, so he didn’t hire a replacement for several months. But George proved him wrong.
Through the 1950s and 1960s, George Lay expanded his sign painting business to include highway billboards across Kansas. At the time, highways had two narrow lanes, speed limits were “reasonable and customary,” and the Chevy V-8 was the hot car. George Lay’s billboards proved a great way to advertise to people on the go. As America became more and more a nation of commuters and travelers, billboards grew to become a dynamic, cost-effective method of communicating to these individuals, and remain just as effective today.
With his billboard business thriving, George Lay once again expanded his business. Because Wichita was the headquarters for several large, independent oil marketers, his company began designing and building signs for hundreds of gas stations, as well as for other commercial businesses in the region. Continued growth in both the demand for electric signage, as well as the technology that supports this advertising method, have placed George Lay Signs in the forefront of this growing industry.
Today, over sixty years later, George Lay Signs Inc. provides innovative signage solutions to a variety of local, regional and national clients. George’s business has grown from a small sign shop offering hand-painted window and truck lettering to one of the region’s premier electric sign and outdoor advertising companies.
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