I’m always on the look out for whatever I can find that puts me at the front edge of “change” in the death care profession. Change in our profession used to happen pretty slow. . . . from home visitations to funeral homes, from wood caskets to metal caskets, to the slow methodical march of a society that now prefers cremation to earth burial. One of the great features and attributes of success of the generational family funeral homes over […]
Dignity plc, Great Britain’s largest funeral home and crematory operator announced last week in this report that you can see from Morningstar, that their 1st Quarter 2022 revenues and operating profits fell considerably over the same period of 2021. However, it also appears that Dignity plc was able to increase their market share for services conducted in Great Britain. Financial performance was affected by the decision of Dignity plc in September 2021 to reduce its prices to the consumer after […]
Last week Park Lawn Corporation (PLC) announced their 1st Quarter of 2022 earnings results. For the period ended on March 31, 2022, the company increased their revenue 17.5% to $83.1 million as compared to the 1Q of 2021 when they reported $70.5 million in revenue. The company also reported Net Earnings of $8.7 million in 1Q 2022 as compared to $7.7 million in 1Q 2021 — that’s a 12.9% increase. You can access the Park Lawn Corporation 1Q22 press release […]
My how time flies by. It seems like I just posted last month’s most read stories. Anyway, in case you missed some of our top articles here’s what our readers found most interesting over the time period from April 15 to May 15. Another new concept. . Can it catch on. Wilbert, Park Lawn make acquisitions. Cemeteries, funeral homes looking for the perfect acquisition, we may have it. Warren Buffet on “How to beat inflation”. . .It will work for […]
In the last few weeks I have heard and seen a lot about about staffing issues in the death care world. For instance, I recently had a discussion with Ryan Thogmartin of Connecting Directors and he told me that their surveys from owners and managers indicate that staffing, employee issues, and just simply getting enough people to do the jobs that need to be done in funeral homes is the number one concern of these management people at this time. […]
I read this article in the Metropolis (IL) Planet the other day. And, quite frankly, it really resonated with me. Part of the reason is that when I researched Metropolis it seemed much like the community that I grew up in. The article revolves around Metropolis funeral home owner and mortician Emily Farmer Loftus and her address as the keynote speaker at the Massac County High Schools Class of 2022 College and Career Signing Day on Friday April 29. You […]
During my mortuary college years I read a book entitled, “Who takes care of the Caretaker“. I don’t remember all of the details of the book because it’s been over 40 years since I read it. However, what I do remember is that it drilled into me loud and clear that “I could not be a caretaker to others if I didn’t first “take care” of myself.” I thought of that book when I received this informational press release about […]
Hillenbrand Industries, parent company of Batesville, reported its 2nd Quarter 2022 (January thru March) last week and with it reported that the Batesville division increased their sales over the same quarter of last year by 6% to $176 million for the quarter. That was done, for the most part, by implementing a “price surcharge” in January 2022 to “offset the significant increase in commodity costs.” The quarterly report, which you can read here, also made mention that “Burial casket […]
Earlier this week I came across this article on how the State of Hawaii is now poised to become the 22nd state of the United States that will legalize alkaline hydrolysis. I’ve said before that even though it has been since 2003 that the first state in the country legalized alkaline hydrolysis — that’s almost two decades ago — I believe that the process has been proven and many of the rest of the fifty states will soon follow suit […]
Here is Funeral Nation Episode #248 where I join anchors Ryan Thogmartin and Jeff “The Funeral Commander” Harbeson for a short discussion of all things Death Care. In a short 12 minutes Ryan, Jeff, and I cover a variety of topics including the real disconnect between what some consumers think they are getting with certain death care services and what funeral homes believe that the consumer is purchasing. We conclude that getting on the “Same Page” would be good for […]
