Wichita has called itself the Air Capital of the World since the 1920s, when Clyde Cessna, Walter Beech, and Lloyd Stearman built aircraft here. The city still makes more of them than almost anywhere else. Textron Aviation builds Cessna and Beechcraft planes on the east side, Spirit AeroSystems builds fuselages for Boeing, and hundreds of machine shops and suppliers feed both. That concentration is an advantage until build rates drop. Every downturn since 2001 has hit this city hard, and the suppliers that come through it best are the ones that never stopped building demand.
A fractional CMO in Wichita costs about $3,500 to $14,000 per month for part-time senior marketing leadership, against $200,000 to $320,000 a year in total pay for a full-time CMO. Typical clients earn $3M to $80M, sell into aerospace or industrial markets, and want revenue that does not rise and fall with one program.
When orders slow, marketing is usually the first budget to go, because it looks optional next to payroll. But aerospace buyers choose suppliers for programs that run ten years or more, and those choices are made during quiet periods as much as busy ones. A shop that disappears for eighteen months has to reintroduce itself when rates recover, while the competitor that kept calling is already approved. A steady, modest program costs far less than restarting from zero.
| Phase | What buyers are doing | Marketing that pays off |
|---|---|---|
| Rates rising | Adding capacity, qualifying new sources | Fast quoting, capacity data, certifications up front |
| Plateau | Cutting cost, consolidating vendors | Cost and quality records, value engineering cases |
| Downturn | Planning the next program | Relationships, new markets, technical content |
The precision and paperwork that aerospace demands, from AS9100 quality systems to full traceability, are exactly what medical device, defense, energy, and semiconductor buyers also want. Wichita shops that diversify do it by naming the capability rather than the industry: five axis machining to tight tolerances, composite layup, special processes with documented control. Then they build pages, case studies, and trade show plans aimed at each new market. Wichita State's National Institute for Aviation Research gives many of them a technical partner to point to.
Wichita's economy is broader than its skyline suggests. Koch Industries, one of the largest private companies in the country, is headquartered here, and Cargill runs its protein business from the city. Pizza Hut and Coleman both started in Wichita. Agricultural equipment makers, health systems such as Wesley and Ascension Via Christi, and a growing group of software firms all compete for the same skilled workers and the same regional buyers.
| Option | Typical cost | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Fractional CMO | $3,500 to $14,000/mo | Revenue tied too closely to one program or prime |
| Full-time CMO (total comp) | $200,000 to $320,000/yr | An existing team needs a leader |
| New market entry plan | $3,000 to $7,500 | Moving aerospace capability into a new industry |
The cost guide shows what changes the monthly fee.
On site in Wichita, Derby, Andover, Park City, Newton, El Dorado, Hutchinson, and Wellington when it helps, remote otherwise. See also the Kansas, Kansas City, and Oklahoma City pages.
Wichita builds airplanes, and it also keeps them flying. Textron Aviation, the maker of Cessna and Beechcraft aircraft, is based here, and the region is full of avionics shops, maintenance providers and companies that design modifications for aircraft already in service. Their customers are often owners of a single airplane, from flight school operators to business owners who fly themselves. Those owners are careful buyers. An upgrade can only go into an aircraft if the Federal Aviation Administration has approved it for that model, usually through a supplemental type certificate, and owners shop around for months before they book downtime. The federal requirement that most aircraft in controlled airspace broadcast their position, known as ADS-B Out, showed how many of them wait until a deadline forces the decision.
| What the owner asks | The weak answer | The answer that books the slot |
|---|---|---|
| Is it approved for my airplane? | "It fits most models" | A searchable list of the models and serial ranges the approval covers |
| What will it cost? | A price for the box alone | An installed estimate with labor, panel work and the items that can raise it |
| How long is it down? | "It depends" | Typical downtime for that model, and how you handle surprises found during the job |
| Who has done this? | Stock photos of a panel | Before and after photos of the same model, with owners willing to talk |
Owners research on type clubs, forums and at fly ins long before they call. Answer their questions there, in plain terms. The Santa Ana page covers private jet charter, the Tulsa page covers another nearby market, and the Kansas page covers the rest of the state.
South central Kansas is hard red winter wheat country, and the grain elevators that rise over its small towns are among the most important buyers in the regional economy. Farmers deliver wheat at harvest, which in this part of the state usually starts in June, and elevators weigh, grade, store and ship it by truck and rail. Many are owned by farmer cooperatives or by larger grain companies that have bought up local sites. For a Wichita company that sells equipment or services, those elevators are a concentrated market with a clear calendar. They buy conveyors and legs, bins, aeration and grain monitoring systems, dust collection, scales, dryers, electrical and repair work, safety training and insurance. Safety is a constant concern: grain dust explosions and engulfment in bins are real hazards, and federal workplace rules for grain handling facilities shape how elevators train staff and maintain equipment. Most of the buying happens around the harvest calendar. Repairs and upgrades are planned in the off season, and nothing new is welcome in the weeks when trucks are lined up at the scale.
| Buyer | When they decide | What earns the order |
|---|---|---|
| Elevator manager | Fall and winter, after the crop is in | Fast service calls and parts on hand |
| Cooperative or grain company | During annual capital planning | Proposals that cover several locations |
| Safety lead | Before harvest and after any incident | Training and equipment tied to the grain handling rules |
| Insurance and finance | At renewal or with a major project | Knowledge of how elevators actually operate |
Plan outreach for the off season, show up at the trade association meetings where elevator managers gather, and be the vendor who answers the phone in July. The Kansas City, Kansas page covers the eastern edge of the state, the Olathe page covers Johnson County, and the Kansas page covers the state.
McConnell Air Force Base, on the southeast side of Wichita next to Derby, is home to the 22nd Air Refueling Wing, which in 2019 became the first active duty wing to receive the KC-46A Pegasus tanker. The base also hosts the Kansas Air National Guard's 184th Wing and the Air Force Reserve's 931st Air Refueling Wing. For Wichita businesses, the people stationed there are a steady and constantly renewing market. Active duty airmen move on permanent change of station orders every few years, and many households arrive in the summer, so each year brings new families who need a place to live, a pediatrician and a dentist, child care, a car repaired or sold, a church, a gym and a school. They arrive with little local knowledge and a short time to decide, and they lean heavily on each other's advice. Spouse groups, unit social media pages and the base's own relocation resources are where those recommendations travel, often before a family has even left its last assignment. A business that wants this market should be easy to evaluate from a distance: clear prices, online scheduling, answers to questions about leases that can be broken when orders change, and a straightforward discount policy. The households that have a good experience tend to say so to the next family arriving.
| When | What the household needs | What helps a business get chosen |
|---|---|---|
| Before the move | Housing, schools, child care openings | Clear information online, remote tours and calls |
| First weeks | Doctors, dentists, car service, a gym | Fast appointments and simple paperwork |
| While stationed | Routine services and family activities | Steady service that earns referrals |
| Next orders | Moving, selling, ending leases | Flexible terms when orders change |
Families often decide before they ever see Wichita. The Kansas page covers the rest of the state, the Overland Park page covers the Kansas City suburbs, and the Oklahoma City page covers the next metro to the south.
Plan on $3,500 to $14,000 a month, depending on hours and scope. A full-time CMO in Wichita costs about $200,000 to $320,000 a year with bonus and benefits. Suppliers trying to move into a new industry often begin with a $3,000 to $7,500 market entry plan, then continue monthly to carry it out.
Yes, at a steady and modest level. Aerospace programs are awarded years before production, often while rates are low. A supplier that stays visible keeps its approvals and relationships, while one that goes quiet has to start over when demand returns. Cutting to a smaller, focused program usually costs far less than rebuilding from nothing later.
By describing its capabilities in terms other industries recognize, then aiming at buyers in medical device, defense, energy, and semiconductors. Tight tolerance machining, quality systems, and traceability all carry over. The work builds pages and case studies for each new market, picks the trade shows that matter, and tracks quotes and wins by industry.
By answering the questions owners ask before they book downtime. Publish the aircraft models and serial ranges each upgrade is approved for, give installed estimates that include labor and panel work, state typical downtime for each model and how surprises are handled, and show before and after photos of the same model with owners willing to talk. Then be present where owners research, such as type clubs, forums and fly ins, well before a deadline or a failure forces the decision.
In the off season, after the crop is in. Around Wichita, wheat harvest usually starts in June, and elevator managers have no time for new vendors while trucks are lined up at the scale. Plan repairs, upgrades and proposals for fall and winter, when cooperatives and grain companies set capital budgets, offer safety training tied to federal grain handling rules before harvest, and be the vendor who answers quickly when something breaks in July.
Be easy to evaluate before they arrive. Airmen at McConnell move on new orders every few years, and many households come in the summer with little local knowledge and a short time to choose housing, doctors, child care and car service. They rely on spouse groups, unit pages and base relocation resources for recommendations. Publish clear prices, online scheduling and flexible terms for when orders change, and earn the referrals that pass from one family to the next.
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