Is buying caskets from Walmart more convenient?

  We have all heard how convenient Wal-Mart can be for the everyday shopper, but has Wal-Mart taken convenient to a whole new level? By buying a casket online at walmart.com you may be saving a lot of time and money,  but is it the most convenient way to buy a casket? Walmart sells about 14 different caskets and all but two are under 2 grand, and ship within 48 hours from Star Legacy Funeral Network. But is walmart the only place you can shop for discount caskets? No there are many websites online now that sell a variety of over 20 differant caskets for under the price of 2 grand and they ship it to the funeral home on whatever date its needed there. You can even get them straight from star legacy. Buying a casket from walmart may sound like a more convenient way to shop to the everyday walmart shopper but it isn't the only online site with discount prices.

http://www.walmart.com/search/search-ng.do?ic=32_0&tab_value=all&search_query=caskets

http://acanderson24.hubpages.com/hub/Wal-Mart-Caskets-Shipped-in-48-hours

http://weeklyworldnews.com/headlines/13159/walmart-caskets/

Annotation Page

Canderson, A. "Wal-Mart: Caskets Shipped in 48 Hours?" HubPages. Hubpages.com, 6 May 2010. Web. 04 Apr. 2012.

 Haddad, Sarah. "WALMART CASKETS | Weekly World News." WALMART CASKETS | Weekly World News. Weekly World News, 29 Oct. 2009. Web. 04 Apr. 2012.

"Funeral History." - Keeping Traditions Alive Throughout the Ages of Mankind. Web. 04 Apr. 2012.

Neff, Jack. "Walmart's Entry Won't Kill Casket Business." Adage.com. Advertising Age, 09 Nov. 2009. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Slocum, Josh. "Final Rights." » Casket Disclaimer Form Prompts Complaint to Federal Trade Commission. Upper Access Publishing, 11 Sept. 2011. Web. 28 Mar. 2012

Theobald, Donna. "WalMart Caskets." LoveToKnow. Lovetoknow.com, 3 July 2010. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Watson, Bruce W. "Save Money, Die Better: Walmart Now Selling Discount Coffins, Urns Online." DailyFinance.com. 9 Nov. 2009. Web. 26 Mar. 2012


"The Funeral Source: The History of Funerals." The Funeral Source.com: "The" Source for Funeral Information. Kingdom Enterprises, 2012. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Do funeral homes have a say in the usage of third-party caskets?

 Being illegal since 1994, despite years of FTC rulings, and how shortsighted it is, some funeral homes still throw obstacles in the paths of consumers who exercise their right to buy a casket outside of the funeral home (Slocum). Funeral homes usually provide the deceased and their family with a casket. They often make a profit from selling and arranging for the casket to be brought to the mortuary for the family. When a family decides to buy a casket from an online company such as WalMart, Costco, Amazon, or any other online casket store, they are buying a third party casket. This reduces the revenue that funeral homes earn from a burial.The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requires funeral homes to accept delivery of third party caskets, but has not limited the fees that funeral homes charge in accepting them or delivering them. The issues funeral homes have with accepting and delivering caskets are that they don't have a lot of personnel/employees to help unload the caskets. If you purchase a third party casket, you may be charged a handling fee from your funeral home to accommodate having an employee on-hand to accept delivery (Theobald).

 Slocum, Josh. "Final Rights." » Casket Disclaimer Form Prompts Complaint to Federal Trade Commission. Upper Access Publishing, 11 Sept. 2011. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

 Theobald, Donna. "WalMart Caskets." LoveToKnow. Lovetoknow.com, 3 July 2010. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

Sites:  http://dying.lovetoknow.com/walmart-caskets
           http://finalrights.org/?p=264

Where did the funeral originate?

Funeral's were believed to originate in the area of modern-day Iraq at around 70,000BCE. The dead were placed in caves and covered in flowers before being put to rest for good. Researchers have also found animal antlers placed near the skeleton remnants. All of these clues suggest that the Neanderthal man believed in the afterlife just as most people do now, and performed rituals to show their respects for those who died.
As time went on, the funeral evolved depending on the culture and nationality. The Ancient Greeks were known to place the deceased on a raft and after pushed out into the ocean, they would then set it on fire by bow and arrow. The Egyptians, as most know, mummified their dead. Depending on the height of royalty, the burials ranged from being placed in a pyramid to being transported down the Nile River on a raft.

"The Funeral Source: The History of Funerals." The Funeral Source.com: "The" Source for Funeral Information. Kingdom Enterprises, 2012. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.

"Funeral History." - Keeping Traditions Alive Throughout the Ages of Mankind. Web. 04 Apr. 2012.

Will Wal-mart take over the funeral industry?

        Wal-Mart decided to test the idea of selling caskets with tremendous success in October 2011.(Neff) They opened before Halloween which boosted their sales exponentially to due to the influx of purchases for trick-or-treat displays. However the funeral home industry isn't worried because Wal-Mart isn't the first corporate giant to market caskets and urns online, Costco, Amazon, and coffins2u.com have been marketing burial products for years. Robert Fells the spokeman for the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association stated "While some of Walmart's offerings may be a discount over those at funeral homes, Mr. Fells noted that comparisons can be difficult. What's more, most homes stopped piling their overhead and service costs into casket prices after Federal Trade Commission rules required them to quote prices to anyone who asked, and to accept third-party caskets."(Neff) Legally speaking Funeral Homes dont care who or what brand supplies the casket because they can no longer make a profit off of dealing the casket to the consumer who is arranging a funeral for their loved one.(Neff) Although it is certainly possible that Wal-Mart can become a dominant force in the casket and burial urn industry Funeral homes have nothing to lose from the superstore marketing their products online.

Neff, Jack. "Walmart's Entry Won't Kill Casket Business." Adage.com. Advertising Age, 09 Nov. 2009. Web. 28 Mar. 2012.


http://adage.com/article/news/walmart-s-entry-kill-casket-business/140341/

Casket Annotation Assignment

Dad Remembered Casket

Is it morally correct for Wal-Mart to sell caskets at a discount price?
Will Wal-mart take over the funeral industry?
Where did the funeral originate and what how do other cultures handle their burials?
Where are these caskets coming from? What company is producing them?
Is there a return policy?
Is there a standard material of what caskets need to be made out of?
How does their price compare to other casket companies?
How long has Wal-Mart been selling caskets?

Would you mind burying a loved one in a Wal-Mart casket?
Do funeral homes have a say in the usage of third-party caskets?
Are there other major retailers who are selling caskets online?
What is the average cost of a funeral?
Is buying caskets from Walmart more convenient?
Walmart sells caskets online. How will Funeral Homes react?
Walmart Hawks Coffins
Save Money, Die Better
Your Funeral Guy
Walmart Enters the Death-Care Market Place
Why Walmarts Entry Won't Kill the Funeral Business
Walmart Caskets
http://finalrights.org/?p=264