Finding fresh angles amid the business of death

One of my long-time sources, a respected financial adviser, likes to cackle at his own plan for being slid into a crematory oven to the carnivalesque notes of The Doors’ “Light My Fire.”

Maybe most people won’t opt for the same final musical tribute, but choosing cremation over burial is an increasing trend – especially after a couple of recessionary years — and one of the fascinating angles to the business of death.

From funeral parlors wired for WiFi – and, I kid you not, in-house cafes — to pet cemeteries to memorial parks, quite a few people make a living dealing with the dead.  This company, Funeral Home Sites.com, has found a niche creating websites for mortuaries.

And as this exquisitely detailed Fast Company oldie-but-goodie about the casket industry demonstrates,  there’s a lot of fodder in the funeral business for solid industry and financial stories.

Rolex watches, Tiffany bracelets and Coach bags aren’t the only high-end goods subject to imitation – as this story illustrates, knock-offs of name-brand caskets are a problem too.  Note the proprietary technology like “MemorySafe  Drawers” that casket makers are developing for people who believe you can take it with you.

Imports, as wells as higher cremation rates, are assailing domestic casket makers, too.  (Do I see a “Die American” slogan coming along to complement the “Buy American” sentiment?)

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are about 30,000 licensed funeral directors nationwide. Each in turn employs a variety of staffers.  Meanwhile, suppliers of goods ranging from embalming materials to memorial cards to funeral-home financial software rely on the funeral industry.  Its trade group, the National Funeral Directors Association, says death is an $11 billion a year business.  This older but detailed report from the GAO may contain outdated statistics but fantastic background material to help you formulate questions and avenues of reporting.

Still, it’s not bulletproof.  As this well-detailed San Francisco Examiner article outlines, consumers increasingly are looking for burial bargains and other costs savings. Societal trends and financial pinches are changing the way we say farewell, creating opportunities for some providers and pinching others.  This USA Today story  notes that cemeteries are suffering just like any other form of real estate, and that individuals are stuck with pre-need plots they purchased years ago and now wish to cash in.  (Who knew there was such a thing as Plotbrokers.com and its catchy slogan: “Because you have a life.”)

Demand for crematory services is rising, leading to regulatory and “not in my backyard” concerns, as this Riverside, Calif. Press-Enterprise article points out.

And the above-ground mausoleum – where everyone gets his or her own little slot — seems to be gaining favor, and pretty much every cemetery I pass these days has one or two of the structures under construction.  Is this a specialty job or one that builders seek and bid on just like a kitchen remodel or strip-mall addition?

Other ideas:

Personal finance. The Federal Trade Commission is a good source of consumer caveats about funeral expenses,  pre-need contracts and other death-related money matters.

Discounters like ExpressCaskets.com and Costco are good fodder. Even more economical are extreme do-it-yourself movements as illustrated in the book “Caring for your Dead: The Final Act of Love.”  The Funeral Consumers Alliance includes more information about what’s legal, what’s not in each state.

Pet death.  If a tribute, product or service exists for human death, rest assured that Rex or Max or Nipper can enjoy the same final care.

Regulation. It’s not pleasant to think about but I was struck the other day by the proximity of a venerable funeral home to one of the best hamburger bars in town.  It got me wondering about how waste products and biohazard material and other unpleasant unmentionables are handled in funeral homes, and who monitors that sort of thing.  Your state regulators will have licensure, inspection and disciplinary records worth analyzing.

The ripple effect of a single funeral. It would be interesting to take a real life example and parse the economic impact of one traditional funeral.  The value of the accouterments and supplies used, the various service providers, from cosmeticians and hair stylist to the officiant, the gravediggers and funeral-home ushers, and so on.