National, September 10, 2022 – Ed Michael Reggie, CEO of Funeralocity.com, has become a prominent voice in the funeral services industry, as American industries struggle to fill plentiful job vacancies in a tight labor market. CNN Business spoke with him about the challenges.
As demand for funeral directors and workers in the industry grows, colleges specializing in funeral service education are growing enrollment. Reggie says that “no one plans to be a funeral director, unless you have a parent in the business, but as a first-time career, it’s generally not a costly degree. It’s a shorter program than a full college degree, and you can make $60,000 to $75,000 a year.”
Funeralocity.com is a consumer advocacy resource that helps families find a funeral home or crematorium provider that best meets their needs. As the industry generates over $16 billion in annual revenue, and there were more than 18,800 funeral homes in the US in 2021, the platform has become increasingly important for those seeking to navigate the vast array of options available.
Reggie says that the shortage of workers in the funeral services industry is so severe that there’s a 90% job placement rate for graduates of these programs. “There’s a big interest in this field from women, and it makes sense. Women absolutely have an empathetic bent and are perhaps better prepared to help families get through a very difficult life event,” Reggie notes.
According to the American Board of Funeral Service Education, women currently make up as much as 72% of recent graduates of funeral services education. Reggie believes that the growing interest in the profession is partly due to the quick career advancement opportunities it provides. He notes that “you do have the opportunity to advance in just a few years from getting your college degree to becoming a funeral director or even owning your own funeral home.”
Funeralocity.com was a Future Factory startup.