The business of splits: Covering divorce season
By Flickr user Ian Munroe
Dennis Hopper is reputed to be doing it on his deathbed. Elizabeth and John Edwards are about to, CNN reported Wednesday. The never-married Brad and Angelina have consulted lawyers, tabloids say. And Tiger Woods – who knows?
It’s January, when some people buy new calendars, mattress pads and organizing tubs while others broom out their obsolete spouses with the rest of the clutter. Average folks will be filing for divorce this month at a pace normally demonstrated by Hollywood stars, according to conventional wisdom.
And I must say, I’m starting to believe the anecdotal lore. On a couple of social message boards I frequent, wails of “He said the D word!” are popping up just about every day since the middle of the month.
One way or the other, a whole industry is in full swing and ripe for a timely business feature. Pundits say January and February are “Splitsville Central” for a variety of reasons:
It’s worth a look, and not only at whether the month named after the Roman god of gates, doorways and beginnings spells cha-ching for divorce lawyers. Check into ancillary businesses like private investigators, couples counseling centers, moving companies, apartment management firms, appraisers, Realtors, pawn shops that deal in wedding jewelry. Are bookstores selling lots of DIY legal kits and ”Life After Marriage” self-help books?
I’ve even heard that divorce parties and divorce registries are becoming a trend as people seek to celebrate their milestones and get friends and family to foot the cost of setting up a separate household. This one, TheyTookEverything.Com, isn’t quite ready for prime-time but it is powered by Amazon.com which is sort of scary. The British department store Debenhams has jumped on board, too. Talk to area caterers, events planners, bars and even wedding services about whether they’re getting requests from the dark side of matrimony.
For statistics and color, talk with county court clerks and judges, and check out the state data at the National Center for Health Statistics. Other resources include:
Divorce magazine (seems like mostly an ad site but may point you to local sites) and family law centers at area law schools and libraries.
