Back to the Future

By Funeral Director Daily November 4, 2021

The World Series has been played for the past two weeks and I’m a baseball fan. . . and former little league coach.  I’m “Old School” and don’t particularly like the “data-driven” strategy decisions used in today’s game of baseball.  I like the past when you watched a hitter’s feet move to determine if they…

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Could “Skimpflation” be part of your margin solution??

By Funeral Director Daily November 3, 2021

My wife, Angie, came home from the grocery store on Monday morning and showed me a bag of Honeycrisp apples that priced out at over $18. . . Now, I don’t buy the groceries, but I could tell from her reaction that this was a high price for these apples.  So, I think we know…

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Carriage Services announces record 3rd Quarter Results, comments on acquisition environment

By Funeral Director Daily November 2, 2021

Funeral home and cemetery consolidator Carriage Services reported on the financial results of their 3rd Quarter for 2021 and in doing so reported record 3rd Quarter revenue for a quarter of $95.0 million.  That is 12.6% higher than the $84.3 million of revenue recorded in the 3rd Quarter of 2020. Here’s what is said in…

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Funeral homes adding “assisted death” to service options

By Funeral Director Daily November 1, 2021

What some people term “Death with Dignity” is a growing movement that I confess to know little about.  However, the acronym MAID, which stands for “Medical Assistance in Dying” and is part of the Death with Dignity movement is becoming better known and accepted.  Legal in Canada since 2016 the Medical Assistance in Dying Movement…

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SCI’s 3Q Report continues solid run

By Funeral Director Daily October 29, 2021

Service Corporation International (SCI), the largest funeral home and cemetery operator in North America reported their 3rd Quarter 2021 financial results on Wednesday.  You can see them for yourself here. Here’s some of what Tom Ryan, Service Corporation’s CEO said of the 3Q 2021 results, “Today we are reporting another strong quarter with earnings .…

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BUSINESS

The Trend for 2026: Technology keeps on coming

By Funeral Director Daily | December 31, 2025

    I’ve been thinking about this “Trends” article for the past month.  I was going to originally title the article “Back to the Future” on the premise that I’ve seen two trends emerging this…

2025 Business Story of the Year: “Rise of the Regionals”

By Funeral Director Daily | December 30, 2025

  If you would ask Gemini Artificial Intelligence what percentage of funeral homes will be sold in the next five years, here is the answer that you will be given:   “While an exact percentage…

A review of 2025 from a “Change/Trend” perspective

By Funeral Director Daily | December 29, 2025

    Tomorrow Funeral Director Daily will unveil its “2025 Business Story of the Year” where I will tell you what I believe is an interesting trend in the Business and Finance of the Death…

FINANCE

2025 Business Story of the Year: “Rise of the Regionals”

By Funeral Director Daily | December 30, 2025

  If you would ask Gemini Artificial Intelligence what percentage of funeral homes will be sold in the next five years, here is the answer that you will be given:   “While an exact percentage…

The Question: “How does the economy look for 2026?” , The Answer: “Depends on who you ask?”

By Funeral Director Daily | December 26, 2025

  The overall economy and, more importantly, the way consumers and Death Care clientele feel about their individual situations has some effect on purchases of Death Care products and services– both Pre-Need and At-Need.  It’s…

Everstory Partner’s Cedar Hill Funeral Home completes renovations

By Funeral Director Daily | December 23, 2025

  Everstory Partners, who may be the nation’s 2nd largest Death Care provider by serving over 65,000 families per year, recently announced completed renovations at their Cedar Hill Funeral Home just outside Washington, DC.  This…

REGULATIONS

New York audit of state funeral industry finds “Red flags”

By Funeral Director Daily | December 19, 2025

    A recent report (November 2025) from the State of New York Department of Health with the results of an audit “which covered April 2019 through November 2023, concluded that the state Department of…

Missing body causing problems between family and cemetery

By Funeral Director Daily | December 3, 2025

    According to details in this article from CBC Canada Royal Air Force glider pilot veteran Gordon Patrick was buried at the Green Acres Cemetery outside of Winnipeg, Manitoba, following his death in 1973. …

Subject of iconic “Homecoming” photo died on Veterans Day

By Funeral Director Daily | November 28, 2025

  This is Thanksgiving weekend — a time to reflect and give thanks for the lives we are living.  Those of you who are old enough will remember back in 1973 a time when our…

CEMETERY

Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers

By Funeral Director Daily | December 16, 2025

  American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings.   But now, according to this recent…

The Green Funeral movement is alive in New York City

By Funeral Director Daily | December 11, 2025

  Amy Cunningham is a friend of mine.  She was a writer/editor who has become a funeral director and she has teased me that I was a funeral director who has became a writer/editor with…

Opinion: The Jewish Faith and Cremation

By Funeral Director Daily | December 10, 2025

  I grew up in the very homogeneous community of Alexandria, Minnesota.  From this Wikipedia article you can see that the city at the time of my growing up had a population of a little…

CREMATION

Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers

By Funeral Director Daily | December 16, 2025

  American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings.   But now, according to this recent…

Opinion: The Jewish Faith and Cremation

By Funeral Director Daily | December 10, 2025

  I grew up in the very homogeneous community of Alexandria, Minnesota.  From this Wikipedia article you can see that the city at the time of my growing up had a population of a little…

Does KFC have a template for Death Care?

By Funeral Director Daily | November 24, 2025

  Alex Fasciano, an analyst for CFRA Research suggests that quick service restaurant player KFC’s (formerly Kentucky Fried Chicken) strategy is “. .centered on driving growth through brand relevance, marketing innovation, (and) operational excellence. .…

PRENEED

More Americans take on debt to cover funerals

By Funeral Director Daily | December 12, 2025

  I came across this recent article from USA Today titled “Americans are going into debt over death.  Here are affordability tips.”  Reading that article led me to a survey and results from Debt.com and…

Preneed companies emerge as funeral home lending sources

By Funeral Director Daily | October 3, 2025

    Morgan Stanley, a global financial services firm that provides a wide range of products and services, including investment banking, wealth management, consumer banking, and brokerage services, recently made this comment in an article, “Life…

Co-op Funeralcare increases “Funeral Plan” sales over 17% despite cyberattack

By Funeral Director Daily | October 1, 2025

  An April cyberattack which you can read about here probably cost the parent company of Great Britain’s largest funeral home operator, Co-op Funeralcare, about a US$ 107 million profit swing but didn’t seem to…

PRODUCTS

The Trend for 2026: Technology keeps on coming

By Funeral Director Daily | December 31, 2025

    I’ve been thinking about this “Trends” article for the past month.  I was going to originally title the article “Back to the Future” on the premise that I’ve seen two trends emerging this…

Cremations, and now tariffs creating headwinds for monument dealers

By Funeral Director Daily | December 16, 2025

  American monument dealers have become accustomed to dealing with the rising cremation rates in the country and the dwindling sales opportunities for cemetery monuments that fact brings.   But now, according to this recent…

The Green Funeral movement is alive in New York City

By Funeral Director Daily | December 11, 2025

  Amy Cunningham is a friend of mine.  She was a writer/editor who has become a funeral director and she has teased me that I was a funeral director who has became a writer/editor with…