Ty deCordova | Groesbeck, Texas
Ty deCordova of Groesbeck, Texas (about 40 miles east of Waco), grew up in the beef industry. Many of his first memories revolved around waking up early, walking with his brother, Cody, through the pasture to the pens where his father and grandfather would already be toiling away.
“We’d play around out there, help with chores, and really just do what kids do,” says Ty.
Ty and his brother also enjoyed showing cattle when they were younger. It was more than just winning and ribbons—it was about the process and character built. They socked away any prize money and eventually used it to fund their own dreams inspired by the entrepreneurial, hard-working spirit of the agricultural industry.
“When I was about 14 or 15, I leveraged that show money to buy my first pair of cattle, which I sold a couple months later,” explains Ty. He just kept up that buying and selling process until he had a nice little business going.
In their early twenties, Ty and his brother approached the owner of Buffalo Cattle, a cattle auction market that the duo tagged along with their dad to nearly every Saturday growing up. The brothers propositioned the owner, asking “If you ever want to sell, we want to buy.” Honestly, they never thought anything would come of it.
But, one day the owner came knocking and offered to sell the business. You bet the brothers agreed, since this part of the cattle business was in their blood. Their great-grandfather owned the very first auction market in Groesbeck and their father, Russ, has worked for decades at Superior Livestock, a large cattle auction business.
“As a kid, I would help my dad with his work,” explains Ty. “Sorting, shipping, loading trucks, working the phones, or whatever was needed – even repping cattle in later teenage years. I definitely was learning what the business was about back then and the 24/7 work it required.”
Ty and Cody rolled up their sleeves, putting in the early mornings and late nights to sharpen their own skills and grow Buffalo Cattle to about 85,000 head of cattle sold per year. Now Ty is back at Superior Livestock, the same company where he worked as a teenager. Today, he helps cattle buyers and sellers from across the country come together and make deals to the tune of 1.7 million head of head transacted per year. Over the years, he has even had the opportunity to trade cattle for King Ranch and Waggoner Ranch, two of the largest ranches in Texas.
Ty credits his success to his father, Russ.
“We’ve traveled many a mile together on this journey and I wouldn’t be where I am today without his mentorship,” says Ty. “There’s really not a “bad” day at work when you have a passion for what you’re doing and get to work among the beef community, some of the most down-to-earth people around.”
Ty is a family man, with a wife and two daughters ages 11 and 14-years old. The two girls show steers in all the major livestock shows and are learning the ways of the cattle business.
“No telling if they’ll keep following in my footsteps,” says Ty. “Right now, they’re just having fun.”
When it comes to beef on the dinner table, Ty favors a grilled Strip Steak or his wife’s Country-fried Steak (especially when she uses Ribeye). If you’re ever road-tripping through the area, Ty suggests stopping at WB Chuckwagon (located between Groesbeck and Mexia) for some excellent food-truck BBQ.
