Business

Salvation Army Enters Funeral Business in Australia

By Funeral Director Daily / March 14, 2017 /

An article written in Australia’s The Guardian points out that after a six month test the Salvation Army will be entering the funeral business on that continent.  Salvo (short for Salvation) says that after doing about 90 services in their six month trial they will be starting up and operating in the New South Wales…

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Survey Shows SCI Firms Charge More

By Funeral Director Daily / March 8, 2017 /

According to CBS article a recent survey by the Funeral Consumer Alliance and Consumer Federation of America shows that funeral and cremation pricing at establishments owned by funeral giant Service Corporation International are, in general, higher than independently owned funeral establishments. It seems to us at Funeral Director Daily that we seem to see news…

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The Public (Market) Face of Funeral Service

By Funeral Director Daily / March 7, 2017 /

Today we introduce the Funeral Director Daily “Death Care Index”  or DCI of the public equity markets.  The DCI will consist of six publicly traded companies that deal in the funeral, cremation, cemetery, and pre-need industries and are publicly traded.  The companies, which we will describe below, include Matthews International, Service Corporation International, Carriage Services,…

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Alcohol and the Celebration — A Trend that is Here

By Funeral Director Daily / March 6, 2017 /

A recent article by NBC News Business has highlighted the seemingly rapid trend in the funeral/cremation business. That trend, becoming somewhat popular among the baby boomer generation, is celebrating the life of the deceased with alcohol at the wake/visitation or post funeral. Funeral firms are searching for just the right way to offer this type…

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Missouri Funeral Home adds Comfort Dog to Staff

By Funeral Director Daily / March 3, 2017 /

There is no doubt that funeral service has changed. There is also no doubt that funeral home owners care about the people they serve. In search of all possible therapies for people in grief and need, the Greenlawn Funeral Home of Springfield, Missouri, has added a comfort dog to its staff. In an article from…

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Duggan Mortuary – Sonoma Valley Sold

By Funeral Director Daily / February 28, 2017 /

Edward Leon, an owner of two other mortuaries in the Sonoma Valley has purchased the Duggan Mission Chapel in Sonoma Valley according to an article in the Index Tribune. The Duggan family is well known in funeral home circles in Northern California where relatives still own mortuaries in San Francisco and Daly City. According to…

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Matthews Funeral Home Profiled in NewsOK

By Dave Westburg / February 25, 2017 /

News OK has a nice article on Matthews Funeral Home in Edmond, Oklahoma.  The firm is owned by Randy and Barbara Matthews.  Their sons Kyle and Kris Matthews are also involved in the business.  The company was started in 2000.  Matthews states that cremations now account for 45% of his cases.      

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Drug Overdoses increasing funeral caseloads

By Dave Westburg / February 25, 2017 /

SFgate has an article on the impact of rising opioid overdoth deaths on the funeral business.  Opioid overdoses have been rising especially for people ages 25 and up.  This chart says it all.  The number of overdose deaths is rising rapidly due to heroin overdoses and illicit opioids    

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Our Thoughts — Cemetery Vandalism Positives

By Funeral Director Daily / February 24, 2017 /

It is no secret that the American political system has pitted all kinds of people against each other. Repubicans vs. Democrats, Black vs. White, Men vs. Women, Lutherans vs. Catholics, and Muslims vs. Jewish. While we believe that this is a sad state of affairs, sometimes in the worst of events, the best of the…

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New York’s only certified woman-owned funeral home.

By Dave Westburg / February 21, 2017 /

Your Clifton Park & Halfmoon has done a nice feature about Kathleen Lowes Sanvidge, the owner of Townley and Wheeler funeral home in Ballston Lake, New York.  Sandvidge has been certified as a Women Business Enterprise in New York.  Her firm is the only certified women-owned funeral home in New York State. Funeral Director’s take: Interesting…

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