Kim Korth

Mary Kim Korth, known by everyone simply as Kim, passed away on June 1, 2026, in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, at the age of 71.

 

Kim is survived by her husband, Jim Malnight, her partner of 42 years and husband of 40 years; her daughters, Erin Malnight Greenwald and Katie Malnight Meisinger; her sons-in-law, Seth Greenwald and Ryan Meisinger; and her beloved grandchildren, Jack and Charlotte Greenwald. She was a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, mentor, leader, and friend, and she brought the same passion, intelligence, loyalty, and unmistakable energy to every part of her life.

 

Kim did not do anything halfway. When she cared about something, everyone knew it. She brought intensity into every room, every conversation, every project, every family gathering, and every idea she believed in. Sometimes that meant she came in at a level ten when the moment may have called for a level two, but that was Kim. She cared deeply, thought deeply, worked hard, loved fiercely, and once she made up her mind, very little could get in her way.

 

She was incredibly smart and endlessly curious. At work, that showed up in the way she wanted to truly understand things: processes, markets, operations, technology, strategy, and what was changing next. She could have technical conversations that many leaders would avoid and could take what she knew from experience, what she had read, and what she had learned from others, and turn it into a vision of what could be. When Kim started talking about the future, people could see it with her.

 

That curiosity was just as much a part of her personal life. Kim was a voracious reader who consumed newspapers, business journals, history, novels, and books of every kind, often reading two or three books a week. She loved learning, debating, questioning, and connecting ideas. Conversations with Kim were rarely boring and almost never short if she cared about the topic.

 

She was also quick-witted, direct, and sharp in the best possible way. Kim had a sassy one-liner for almost any situation, and it usually came out faster than most people had even realized there was an opening for one. She used that wit to cut tension, make people laugh, and make rooms feel more comfortable. She could command a room through presence alone, but it was her intelligence, humor, and willingness to say the thing others would not that made people listen.

 

Kim built an extraordinary career in business, manufacturing, automotive, staffing, and board leadership. She started and ran IRN, a boutique consulting firm focused on middle-market companies, and became one of the leading voices in North America on the automotive supplier industry. She served as interim CEO for multiple companies, worked extensively in M&A, and helped private equity firms and family-owned businesses grow, restructure, and transform.

 

In 2011, she became President and CEO of Supreme Corporation, a publicly traded truck and bus upfitter that was near bankruptcy when she stepped in. She helped lead its turnaround. She later became President and CEO of Techniplas, a Wisconsin-based plastics company, helping grow the business more than 11X during her tenure.

 

In 2017, Kim co-founded 6th Avenue Group, named after the street she grew up on. It was her way of honoring both where she came from and the father who shaped so much of how she approached business, leadership, and life. The firm was focused on building equity positions in companies with which it worked. In 2019, 6th Avenue Group purchased Nissen Staffing, later renamed Engauge Workforce Solutions. In 2021, 6th Avenue Group started RELY Contract Manufacturing. Kim remained CEO of both Engauge and RELY and Managing Director of 6th Avenue Group, working alongside her daughters, Erin and Katie, who became Presidents of Engauge and RELY respectively. Kim also served on numerous public, private, and nonprofit boards throughout her career, including Stoneridge Inc., Koozie Group, Aeritek, Engauge Workforce Solutions, and others.

But Kim’s career was never just about the titles, companies, or transactions. What made her remarkable was not only what she built, but how many people she helped build along the way. She cared deeply about people at every level of an organization. She had a rare ability to make people feel seen, heard, and valued, whether they were in the boardroom, on the production floor, in the office, or just trying to figure out where they fit. She saw potential in people before they saw it in themselves, and there are countless people whose careers, confidence, and lives changed because Kim believed in them.

 

Kim was strong, stubborn, tenacious, and incredibly fearless. When channeled well, that fearlessness helped her achieve things few people, and especially few women in male-dominated industries, could have imagined. She was never afraid to tell people in power the difficult things that needed to be said, even when most people in the room would have been too cautious, too intimidated, or too worried about the consequences to say them out loud. As she would tell her daughters, "We don't jump from 'em, we jump at 'em". She did not do it to be difficult. She did it because she believed the truth mattered, the work mattered, and people deserved honest conversations.

 

That fearlessness had a way of giving other people permission to be braver too. Kim made people believe they could speak up, take the risk, challenge the room, and trust that their voice belonged there. She never wanted to be treated as the token woman in the room, and no one who heard her speak for more than 30 seconds ever mistook her for one. She was there because she had something to say, because she knew what she was talking about, and because she was going to add significant value to the conversation.

 

That same stubbornness, of course, could frustrate the people who loved her most, especially when she refused to slow down, refused help, or insisted on doing something herself that someone else gladly would have done for her. But that was Kim. Once she committed, she was all in.

 

Kim adored traveling, especially with her husband Jim. She loved history, which shaped the way she experienced the world. As a history major with a deep interest in medieval studies, she was always drawn to the stories behind the places she visited. If there was a castle to tour in Scotland, Kim was there. If there were remnants of historic sugar plantations and a museum of tools used to process sugar cane on a small Caribbean island, Kim was there too. She did not travel just to see places. She traveled to understand them.

 

She was also a huge foodie and had a gift for finding local hidden gems wherever she went, the kind of places with spectacular local food that made a trip feel even more memorable. For Kim, the best parts of travel were not only the sights, but the stories, the history, the meals, and the people around the table.

 

She also loved golf. It was one of the great joys she shared with Jim, and she could always find a reason to get out and swing a club. Her competitive nature followed her onto the course, even in the friendliest matches. She often kept her own score whether anyone else was keeping score or not, always looking for a way to challenge her personal best. She played competitively throughout her life at both Oconomowoc Golf Club in Wisconsin and Bent Pine Golf Club in Vero Beach, Florida, which her father helped found. Through golf, Kim built friendships that meant a great deal to her.

 

Kim loved family gatherings, especially the holidays. Thanksgiving was one of her favorites because it brought together three things she loved deeply: family, cooking, and the Detroit Lions. Born and raised in Michigan, Kim was a diehard fan of Detroit sports, especially the Lions and Pistons. Moving to Wisconsin did nothing to soften her loyalty. Whenever the Lions beat the Packers, she made sure everyone knew it, including writing it in big letters on a white board. She also accepted the fact that she would hear it just as loudly when the Packers eventually beat the Lions. That never stopped her from rubbing it in while she had the chance, as any true Lions fan would.

 

Kim loved cooking, a passion she shared with both daughters, especially Erin. She loved finding new recipes in magazines, online, or wherever inspiration appeared, and she found cooking to be a way to unwind after long days of work. She also made sure to continue making her mother’s recipes, keeping family traditions alive through the food she served.

 

At her core, Kim was a nurturer. When her children or grandchildren were sick, hurting, or simply needed love, she dropped everything. Her cooking, her hugs, her presence, and her fierce devotion had a way of making people feel cared for in exactly the way they needed. She made her daughters a priority no matter how demanding her professional life became.

 

When Katie was in preschool and performing as a bumble bee in a Winnie the Pooh play, Kim had a critical business trip to China. She still went, spent less than 12 hours there, and flew back immediately so she would not miss it. She also never missed a varsity soccer game for Erin or Katie in high school. Her daughters grew up knowing that they could do anything they set their minds to, including leading businesses, because their mother showed them exactly what that looked like. She also showed them that a career could be big without making your family feel small.

 

Kim was at her happiest around her grandchildren, Jack and Charlotte, who adored her even from another state. Seeing them was the highlight of her day, whether in person or on FaceTime. Her love for them was immediate, joyful, and complete.

 

Kim and Jim were together for 42 years and married for 40 years, and they were truly each other’s best friends. They loved being together, traveling together, golfing together, boating together, and building a life side by side. They never seemed to get tired of each other. They made a point of doing as much together as possible, not because they had to, but because they genuinely wanted to spend their time that way.

 

Kim had a way of making people feel seen, included, and cared for. She gave generously, loved fiercely, worked relentlessly, and built a life centered around family, friendship, impact, and possibility. She was intense, funny, brilliant, stubborn, loving, competitive, curious, and unforgettable. Her legacy lives on in her family, the companies she built, the people she mentored, the careers she changed, and the countless lives made better because she believed in them.

 

A celebration of Kim’s life will be held later this summer. The family will share details once arrangements are finalized, allowing time for Jim and the family to process this loss and for those who wish to travel to make plans. The intention is to gather in a way that truly celebrates Kim’s life, her spirit, and the extraordinary impact she had on the people who loved her.