Every once in a while, news piles up on my desk that I just cannot fit into a full-length Funeral Director Daily article, but I feel that it is important enough that I can at least provide readers with the information and links on how to find out more about the news.  Today is one of those days and our news includes mergers and acquisitions, new products, executive promotions and more.

And, the news involves well-known death care companies like Matthews International, Tribute Technology, MJK Marketing, the NewBridge Group, and Homesteaders Insurance.

 

Bancorp Commercial announces National Loan program for the funeral home industry — “The Bancorp Bank, the wholly-owned banking subsidiary of The Bancorp, Inc.  is pleased to announce its newly established Conventional Loan Program for the funeral industry, provided through its Commercial Lending business. In partnership with Homesteaders Life Company, a leading provider of preneed and at-need funeral funding for consumers, the Conventional Loan Program offers financing specifically for the acquisition and refinancing of multi-unit funeral home businesses across the country.”

For more information click here

Tony Kumming named President at NewBridge Group —“NewBridge Group, a leader in funeral service succession planning for more than 20 years, today announced the appointment of Tony Kumming as President.  Kumming has more than 15 years’ experience successfully managing the sale of funeral homes. He holds a Juris Doctor from Stetson University College of Law, and his past roles include business development and analysis at Keystone Group Holdings, and senior business advisor at NewBridge Group. In 2019, Kumming became a managing partner at NewBridge Group.”

For more information click here

Matthews International enters joint development agreement in Fuel Cell industry — “Matthews International Corporation announced today a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with Illuming Power Inc., a Vancouver BC engineering firm specializing in the design, prototype, manufacture and sale of hydrogen fuel cell related materials, components and stacks. This two-year partnership will develop an automated, expanded graphite bipolar plate production line that will dramatically reduce production costs, accelerating the mass market adoption of fuel cells for a variety of end-use markets, including for transportation and stationary applications.”

Matthews International Corporation is a global provider of brand solutions, memorialization products and industrial technologies.

For more information click here

Tribute Technology said to have acquired MJK Marketing — It’s been reported by Funeral Nation and in the National Funeral Directors Memorial Business Journal that the industry’s Tribute Technology company has acquired long-time industry marketing and consulting business MJK Marketing.

The February 24, 2022, edition of the Memorial Business Journal mentions that MKJ Marketing has been an award-winning marketing firm for more than 40 years.  They also mention that the management team of MKJ Marketing will continue in place after the acquisition.

Here is the website for Tribute Technology

Here is the website for MJK Marketing

Two Portland (Maine) funeral homes to merge –“Two Portland funeral homes plan to join forces, they announced this week.  A.T. Hutchins and Dolby, Blais & Segee will each continue to operate under its own name, with the current owner-operator and staff in place. Each is family-owned and -operated.  Both funeral homes characterized the merger as an effort to combine resources while continuing to offer customers a choice. Terms of the arrangement were not disclosed.  They serve a market that includes Portland, Westbrook, Gorham and Windham.”

For more information click here

Finally, we would like to take this opportunity to tell you of the growth of Funeral Director Daily.  Only a month ago we reached our first 30-day period where we reached over 12,000 page-views among our readership.  Then, just last week we had a three-day period where we were at over 13,000 page-views with our rolling 30-day record of about 13,700.  We now expect to hit the 14,000 page-view number in sometime in March.  Thank you.

The number receiving our daily death care related news from e-mails, Twitter, and Facebook following has now grown to 2,595 as of last week.  That number continues to grow at a rapid pace also.  Thanks again and we will continue to serve up daily information relative to those in the death care profession.

We appreciate our readers.  Thank you.

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