Business

Pinnacle/Rollings add staff. . . .importance and presence of non-public companies seems to be growing

By Funeral Director Daily / February 12, 2025 /

    We received an e-mail last week that announced “Pinnacle Funeral Service and Rollings Funeral Service are proud to announce that Nancy Weil has joined the team as Director of Community Outreach. . . . .Nancy’s career includes serving as the Membership Director for the Order of the Golden Rule (OGR) for the past…

Trump and Musk. . . .Can you learn from their cost efficiency mandate?

By Funeral Director Daily / February 10, 2025 /

    President Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk are rapidly looking at costs that are currently in the government budget that may be able to be whittled out.  It may not be perfect and it may not even be proper — as is discussed in this Yahoo Finance article…

Funeral homes receive rare “Letters of Assurance” from public authorities

By Funeral Director Daily / February 6, 2025 /

    Every day I search out articles about Death Care services to provide me with information on topics of interest in our profession/industry.  One of the things that has been extremely disappointing to this life-long funeral director and funeral home owner is the amount of negative publicity our profession piles on itself because of…

The Trump tariffs and Death Care

By Funeral Director Daily / February 3, 2025 /

    The International Trade Association defines tariffs as such:  “A tariff or duty (the words are used interchangeably) is a tax levied by governments on the value including freight and insurance of imported products. Different tariffs applied on different products by different countries.”   I’m writing this on Saturday morning and the “Trump tariffs”…

Project “Trust” to gain business

By Funeral Director Daily / January 31, 2025 /

    Sometimes we make the process of gaining business or market share more complicated than it has to be.  We pay for focus groups and surveys and hiring marketing companies to tell us how to grow our businesses.  All of those methods can help and paying experts in those fields to do just that…

Newcomer Funeral Service adds locations in New York and Indiana

By Funeral Director Daily / January 27, 2025 /

    With one acquisition announced in December and another in January Newcomer Funeral Service, based in Topeka, Kansas, continues to grow.  The Newcomer website states “Newcomer Funeral Service Group is an independent funeral home, crematory, and cemetery service provider based in Topeka, Kansas with operations in ten states.”   According to this press releasefrom…

Celebration coffee and business insights that may help funeral homes

By Funeral Director Daily / January 23, 2025 /

    I’m writing this article mid-morning on Saturday.  It’s already been a busy morning for me as I got up early and did my run and have since been to Starbucks for what I term my “Saturday Celebration Coffee” which celebrates my six consecutive days of running.  I take Sundays off!!   I’m also…

Hockey, competitiveness, and time horizons

By Funeral Director Daily / January 22, 2025 /

    I’ve told you before that I get my inspiration for articles from the strangest of sources.  The other day I was on YouTube and looking for a certain speech presented by then President Ronald Reagan.  For whatever reason, this clip of United States Gold Medal hockey goalie Jim Craig came up as a…

My Opinion: Federal Trade Commission should start over with “Funeral Rule”

By Funeral Director Daily / January 20, 2025 /

  The “Funeral Rule” came into effect in April 1984.  That’s 40 years ago.   Don’t get me wrong. . . . I’m an advocate for consumer protections.  The “Funeral Rule” was supposed to offer those protections back in 1984. But in my opinion, the actual reality of the rule ever since it was implemented,…

Foundation Partners Group names John D. Smith as new CEO

By Funeral Director Daily / January 17, 2025 /

  It’s been over eight months since cremation oriented funeral home and cemetery operator Foundation Partners Group (FPG) has been without a permanent CEO at their Orlando, Florida, offices.  We received news this week that FPG has now named and hired their new Chief Executive. . . and with this decision the company reached across…