I was watching the news the other day and it struck me that the issues going on in the Middle East could again cause some of the “Supply Chain” issues that we found in our businesses across America back in 2021 and 2022.  Among those issues in the Death Care business was the timely delivery of cemetery monuments due, in part, to the delay in getting the stone for monuments from overseas to the United States.

 

If you don’t remember that time and issue here is an article from 2022 by CNN entitled “Headstone makers struggle to serve grieving families as supply chain woes continue”.

 

Recently I read this recent article entitled “Fears of prolonged Red Sea shipping crisis fuel inflation fears, as oil, retail cargo delayed“.   Coupled with some of the news I now see on television it made my mind wander, as it always seems to do, to how this might affect Death Care.  The first thing that came to mind was the supply chain delays that we had on monuments during the pandemic.

 

I’m sure our monument companies are doing the best that they can and they probably have larger stocks of raw stone than they did prior to the pandemic, but if you have ever served a family waiting for a custom monument to be placed in a cemetery, you know that those families can get anxious about marking the grave of their loved one.

 

So, that reminded me of a product that I noticed at the 2023 NFDA Convention in Las Vegas.   Many of you in the funeral and cemetery business may remember temporary products that are placed at recent grave sites to recognize the deceased buried there until a permanent marker is placed.

 

Well, the product that I noticed was on that thought, but the people at Crowne Vault had delivered, what in my opinion, is a better and more refined product in that category.  What they call their “Temporary Grave Marker” can be seen here.  Again, in my opinion, what makes this a better product for temporary use is the ability of the marker to “pivot” to either an upright or a flat position.  From my point of view, the flat position allows this temporary marker to be put in a position where cemetery maintenance can be done without removing the marker. . . and I think that is a big advantage for labor costs.

 

 

In addition, the temporary grave marker is available with a really nice nameplate as compared to some markers where a cemetery or funeral director just writes the deceased’s name on the marker.  The “presentation” of the Crowne Vault Temporary Grave Marker is very professional.  As a matter of fact, the nameplate and the marker frame each come in three selected color options.

 

If you are not familiar with Crowne Vault it is their urn vaults that are the centerpiece of their products.  They seem to be the perfect vault for cremation needs.  You can learn more about Crowne Vault and their products here.

 

More news from the world of Death Care:

• H.E. Turner receives national Pursuit of Excellence Award.  The Batavian (NY)
• H.E. Turner Funeral Home website
• New Maldon crematorium to ease stress for grieving families.  BBC (Great Britain)
• Inflation hits UK funeral costs as prices rise for first time since pandemic.  Financial Times (Great Britain)
• Firm steps up to give “hero” paramedic his funeral.  BBC (Great Britain)
• Metairie pet cremation business catches fire, reports no injuries.  Nola.com  (LA)

 

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