Digitizing India's Deathcare Industry

Authored by: Rishabh Jalan - CEO, Last Journey Funeral Services

Across the globe, various faiths and beliefs have had their version and interpretations of structured deathcare and funeral services. This industry primarily deals in funeral management, cremations or burial services, and memorials of different sorts. The idea behind such an industry is to help families grieve and take time off from the hassle of making social arrangements. Another notion that drives deathcare is that people want to give a memorable farewell to the deceased. In terms of India’s deathcare and funeral services industry, it has for long been fragmented and at the mercy of unorganized entities. This has created countless instances of disputes, traumas, and other unpleasant experiences for mourning families.

Currently, the industry stands at just over USD 3.5 billion in India, which is still a long way from USD 0.98 billion in 2008. However, there is much to be done to standardize this industry. After the Digital India program was launched in 2015 by Hon' Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, all the sectors within India’s economy have upgraded themselves to leverage the power of new-age technologies. Players such as Last Journey pioneered the digitization of India’s deathcare and funeral management industry, and various startups soon followed it up. In this service field, digitization helps in the smooth bilateral; communication between the business and consumer, creating a smooth customer experience.

Taking things online is just a portion of digitally rebooting this space; on the company’s side, vendor management becomes much easier when tech is applied within the organization. On the part of the customers, booking cremation grounds and prayer halls or just arranging other things becomes more accessible. The absence of such convenience could be felt starkly during the covid-19 pandemic, where families could not get a place to perform the last rites; in many cases, cremation grounds were overbooked, pandits unavailable, and mortal remains left stranded. With tech-enabled machinery to streamline and organize, such cases are now easily avoidable.

With the urban lifestyle and oncoming of the new generation, there has never been a more practical need for organized deathcare and funeral services to go online. Often, friends and some family members cannot make it to the last rites or prayer gatherings of the deceased due to multiple factors such as time scarcity, distance, and other factors; with the help of online prayer meetings, those living far away are able to attend such gatherings. Another scope for digitization in this arena comes in the form of funeral gifting. In the funeral profession, eCommerce has provided a way for funeral homes to offer flowers and gifts directly on their website, generating between 5-25% commissions on every product sold.

In conclusion, it is safe to say that digital developments and integrations are carrying the new frontier of the deathcare industry. Several physical funeral service providers across the country are shifting their business to the online marketplace. Companies such as Mokshshil, Shardhanjali.com, Anthyesti, and Last Journey Funeral Services are spearheading this growth, and the industry is poised for multi-fold growth in coming years.