Changes in California's population/attitudes spell new trends in funeral industry.

PLACERVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 15, 1994--In any business, assessing the growing, changing needs of the consumer population is key to a company's survival.

It would be easy to assume that because death is as certain as taxes, the funeral industry would be immune to concerns of consumer change. But the business of caring for the deceased is as affected by market changes as any other enterprise.

California's population now includes a wide variety of ethnic groups, each with their own traditions for memorializing the dead. In addition, acceptance of cremation by some of the more conservative Christian religions, and changes in the attitudes of many baby boomers have had a significant impact on California's funeral industry.

"Funeral directors are here to serve the public," said Ron Day, chief executive officer and president of White & Day Mortuary Chapel in Hermosa Beach, Calif., and president of the California Funeral Directors Association (CFDA), "and when the (public's) needs change, (funeral directors) have to change. The funeral industry is a business like any other; service to customers is key. We have to be aware of how best to serve families."

With many diverse ethnic groups in California, Day said, funeral directors have the challenge of learning the customs and funeral rituals of many cultures. "We have to `go to school' and learn how to serve these families better, whether they are Vietnamese, Hmong, Hindu or Islamic," he said. Day added that the CFDA provides educational programs to assist funeral directors in learning how to more effectively serve a diverse population.

Aspects of this population diversity were recently highlighted in an Aug. 29 Los Angeles Times article titled, "New Niches for Funeral Marketing." Times staff writer Tracy Weber noted: "These days, perhaps the best way to see who's living in Southern California is to look at who's dying.

"A decade ago, Southern California funeral homes and cemeteries could count on a steady stream of traditional, mostly white, Protestant funerals ... Now many funeral directors are pushing aside the Ethan Allen-style furniture to install fire-resistant tile floors to catch ashes from Buddhists' incense and ceiling fans to disperse the perfumed haze. Or they are opening sacrosanct embalming rooms to relatives for Muslim bathing rites."

Northern California, too, sees the impact of ethnic diversity and the importance of serving a variety of ethnic and religious backgrounds. Ric Newton, co-owner of Newton-Bracewell Chico Funeral Home in Chico, Calif. remarked that Fresno has one of the highest concentrations of Hmong (from Laos), more than 30,000. "Ancestor worship is a large part of their culture, and their funeral rites include three to four days of ritual and very involved ceremony."

Some funeral homes, Newton added, have special branch chapels to accommodate the needs of various ethnic and religious groups. "Some of the younger generation in various ethnic groups follow their culture's traditions out of respect for grandparents, but they're also sometimes open to a blending of American traditions with their own." The key, he said, is to be sensitive to the customer's needs and present them with a variety of options.

Newton added that he also sees a trend toward simplicity and personalization, particularly where Baby Boomers are concerned. "In the past several decades there have been a lot of funeral rituals to which many Baby Boomers don't subscribe. They want something that is simple, yet personal and meaningful."

As an example, Newton noted a recent funeral service for a young man whose primary interest was the martial arts. The service included a tribute video chronology, a performance from a martial arts school, music that was contemporary to the deceased's peers and other personal reflections of his life.

"The message to funeral directors throughout the state is that we need to be sensitive and share helpful ways in allowing families to choose memorialization that has significance to them," Newton said. "Just because they want something simple doesn't mean they don't want anything at all."

Another growing industry trend is pre-need planning. "Funerals are now seen as more of a consumer purchase rather than as an event or rite," said Patrick Burke, director of planning and pre-financing at Ted Mayr Funeral Home in Ventura, Calif. "A consumer purchase is something about which you ask questions and plan."

Burke noted that pre-planning is on the rise, and he attributes it to the fact that people are now more willing to talk about pre-need and take care of all the details of the disposition of their own remains.

Cremation has been a growing trend for a number of years. "In 1993, almost 44% of the deaths in California resulted in cremation, an increase of almost 2% from the previous year," Burke said. "There's simply less taboo. Some of the conservative Christian denominations have (adapted) their views on cremation." In addition, environmental and economic concerns play a large role in the decision for cremation.

This growing trend toward cremation has not gone unnoticed. Jacquie Taylor, president of the San Francisco College of Mortuary Science, noted that companies are now offering an entire line of cremation items. "This is good news for the consumer," Taylor said. "When the industry becomes more adaptive the consumer receives more options."

Taylor feels what is important is that consumers, whatever they choose, make decisions with enough information. "The funeral service industry is getting the message and hearing that people want alternatives. They're hearing that we need to communicate a message to the public.

"I think the consumer is ready to hear this. People are more open to it; it's an important dialogue. Funeral directors need to be part of it. Ask questions. That's how the funeral service industry can change to meet (the public's) needs."

Funeral directors, Taylor said, need to convey the message to the public that what they offer is a full range of options and services. "We have allowed the public the perception that what we provide are cars and caskets," Taylor said.

"We haven't allowed the public to know what goes on behind the scenes. The services we provide are complicated; what we do is not simple. We try to make it uncomplicated for people by handling the myriad of problems and confusion of getting (the family) through the bureaucratic maze.

"It doesn't have to be an elaborate service; even the simplest arrangement really isn't simple. It takes nearly 40 hours of labor for a modest funeral. Four, five or six people go to bat for the family from the time the phone rings (at the funeral home). This is a chain of events the funeral service industry never communicates to the public, but it's a message we must convey."

Burke noted a growing trend among the funeral directors themselves. "Funeral directors are also students of the grieving and psychological healing process, and they're endeavoring to be actively involved in that healing process. Taking care of the remains is only a small percentage of what we do," Burke said.

"Taking care of the survivors is an additional focus of our industry. Some funeral homes have established grief recovery groups or work with the AARP Widowed Persons Service Group. There is more of that kind of outreach showing up (within the industry)."

These trends are expected to continue well into the future. As Day noted, while the trend is to be less "traditional," the value of the service itself is still recognized; now it's just manifested in many different ways.

"In the late 70s and early 80s," Burke said, "hundreds signed up for direct cremation with no service at this (Ted Mayr) funeral home. Now we're seeing a shift toward memorialization; they're including visitation or viewing and a memorial service or both, or a full traditional funeral with only the final means of disposition (cremation) being different."

Taylor sees that Baby Boomers are struggling with values. Consumer preference shifts, she said, have been occurring for 20 years; typically, California is impacted more quickly than the Midwest or the South. There is a growing trend toward people exploring spirituality and life.

Perhaps the most significant trend is that of funeral directors adapting to changing needs and recognizing that they must listen to the consumer's concerns. "Ask questions," Day said. "A funeral director's function is to serve your needs; by all means, make your needs known."

CONTACT: California Funeral Directors Association, Placerville

Bill Vlcek or Betty Young, 916/621-1755