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A low-cost approach to funerals |
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Written by DeadGirl
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Friday, 25 June 2004 |
A new company started by veterans of the 'death-care' industry provides cremation plus memorial for $995
With the cost of traditional funerals rising faster than inflation, the owners of a startup called ARIA Cremation Services at 10116 E. Northwest Hwy. are betting that North Texans are ready for a low-cost, cremation-only alternative.
Funeral prices in Texas and around the country have generally been increasing by 5% a year, according to the Federal Trade Commission, and the cost of a typical funeral in Texas has reached more than $6,500, according to the National Funeral Directors Association.
Harold Giddens, who co-founded ARIA Cremation Services with his brother Gill, said consumers need cost-saving options.
"I've seen things change for the worse in the funeral and cemetery business," said Giddens, who's been in the so-called "death-care" industry for more than 15 years.
Both Giddens brothers spent time with large funeral chains before starting ARIA.
Harold worked as an area sales director for Houston-based Service Corp. International (NYSE: SRV), the world's largest funeral and cemetery company. Gill Giddens has 13 years of industry experience, working as a sales manager and then a regional vice president for Carriage Services before joining Service Corp. International as an area sales director.
The Giddens' company offers only cremations and memorial services. A full-service cremation and memorial service at ARIA costs $995. Other products and services, such as specialized urns and services, are offered at additional prices.
ARIA believes it is the sole company in Dallas to provide cremations only, though a number of funeral homes in the area offer the service, Harold Giddens said.
All funeral homes, cemeteries and crematories must be licensed through the state. The Texas Funeral Service Commission, however, does not track whether a business provides cremation-only or full funeral services, said Mitzi Chafetz, open records director for the commission.
Service Corp. International owns 17 funeral homes in Dallas-Fort Worth. While SCI's funeral homes offer cremations, none focus on that segment, said Wes Killian, market director for Dallas-Fort Worth.
Killian said companies such as ARIA will have little impact on the traditional funeral home business.
"People who would normally call a full-service funeral home might call them if they're basing their choice solely on price," he said. "But we don't see it as a threat."
'Ridiculous' prices
Since opening its Dallas location on May 15, ARIA has arranged for four cremations and written six "pre-need" contracts for people planning their final arrangements in advance. Harold Giddens estimates that, once established, his company will arrange for 500 to 1,000 cremations per year.
ARIA does not conduct cremations on-site. Instead, it mainly uses one of five crematories in North Texas that traditional funeral homes here use, Harold Giddens said. ARIA plans to build an on-site crematory within the year.
The company employs four, though that number will soon grow. The Giddens brothers plan to open a Fort Worth location in two months before adding locations in Denver and Colorado Springs, Colo., within the next three months.
The brothers used their own funds to start ARIA. They will use some private money as the company grows, Harold Giddens said. Approximately $150,000 goes into starting up each location in a leased building. The Giddens declined to speculate on annual-revenue targets.
One reason for opening locations in Colorado is the acceptance of cremation in that area, Harold Giddens said. Denver's cremation rate is as high as 70%, he added.
By contrast, the cremation rate in Texas is 17%, according to research the American Association of Retired Persons released in 2000.
Nationally, cremations represent 26% of total deaths. Cremation rates vary by state, ranging from 61% in Hawaii to 7% in Mississippi and West Virginia, according to the AARP, which put the average cost of a cremation at $1,800 in 2000.
Research by the Cremation Association of North America found that, of those who choose cremation, more than 25% do so because of cost concerns.
Cremation is popular in cities among older individuals with higher education and more money, said Jack Springer, executive director of the Cremation Association of North America. It's often chosen by transient people who don't have strong ties to a certain area, which explains cremation's popularity in retirement communities such as California and Florida, Springer said.
While the cremation rate in Texas remains below the national average, it is rising steadily, said Ken Whittaker, dean of students and full-time instructor at the Dallas Institute of Funeral Service.
Whittaker attributed Texas' relatively low cremation rate to the state's traditional lifestyle and social atmosphere.
"People bury mama like they buried papa," he said. "Families tend to stay with what they've done in the past."
The Cremation Association of America has predicted that the U.S. cremation rate will reach 36% in 2010, when the rate in Texas could be near 31%.
Harold Giddens hopes to help Texas reach that percentage. He said ARIA's biggest challenge will be to educate Texas consumers about the benefits of cremation, including convenience, simplicity and price.
"It's time somebody stood up and said (funeral) prices are ridiculous," he said. "It's a service you have to have, but you don't have to pay that much for it."
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5297882/
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Taphophilia?
taphophilia (taf′ō-fil′ē-ă)
ORIGIN:
From the Greek words taphos, meaning "tomb" or "sepulcher" and philia, meaning "attraction or affinity to something, in particular the love or obsession with something"
DEFINITION: 1. An excessive interest in graves and cemeteries. 2. A love or fondness for funerals, graves, and cemeteries. 3. In psychiatry, a morbid attraction to graves and cemeteries
Quote Repository
“By foreign hands thy humble grave adorned; By strangers honored, and by strangers mourned.” Alexander Pope 1688-1744
Shirtless and Sculpted
The Men of Mortuaries 2008 Calendar is now available! All sale proceeds benefit KAMMCARES, a breast cancer foundation.
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