How the death-care industry is adapting to the modern consumer

The death-care industry, like any line of work, has had to learn to adapt to an evolving consumer and environment. But with a funeral home being a unique type of job, it does bring its own set of challenges.

The first time we planned on chatting with Paul Gaudio for this story, he called at the last minute and asked if we could reschedule, saying he was picking someone up for work.

A fairly innocuous statement in most industries, but for Gaudio, a licensed funeral director with Carson Funeral Homes in Orillia, Ont., "picking someone up" meant a deceased person whose arrangements he would prepare.

Whether it's the scene of a car accident, a morgue or a seniors' home, picking up a body is just one task a funeral director carries out in their line of work.

But like every industry, what worked for an older generation is antiquated in the next one, and what would suffice in the previous decade could be obsolete today.

CTVNews.ca spoke with Gaudio and fellow licensed funeral director Shawn Davidson – who together have more than 60 years of experience – to get their thoughts on the death-care industry, how they juggle between providing a service for people in mourning while still operating a business, and how they've taken the phrase "adapt or die" as serious as any.

At some point, we all have to deal with death, whether it's a family member, a friend, a pet or ourselves. We can't stop what's coming. But what can trip up many Canadians is the price of a service for their loved ones.

According to Canadian Funerals Online, a digital resource that connects people with those who can help plan a service, the average price of a traditional funeral can range anywhere from $5,000 to $12,000, but even that number can rise, depending on circumstances like transferring a body between locations, embalming, time and labour for the  funeral home staff, flowers, and the casket itself.