Drug deaths add more life to funeral trade

President Duterte’s aggressive antidrug campaign may be bad news for some, but it’s definitely good news for funeral homes, drug rehab centers and related businesses, which are seen as rising stars in the franchising industry, said  an official of the Philippine Franchise Association (PFA).

Franchising guru and PFA chair emeritus Samie Lim said “funeral homes will flourish this year,” as would drug rehab centers, pet grooming services, pet hotels and pet funeral homes and cemeteries.

But Lim, who spoke in a briefing on Thursday, did not directly link the bright prospects of funeral homes to the increasing body count in the wake of Duterte’s uncompromising crackdown on crimes.

Since the President was sworn into office on June 30, the Inquirer has so far documented some 60 drug-related killings, condemned by some sectors as  “extrajudicial killings” or summary executions.

Thousands of confessed drug users have also surrendered to their barangay officials or local police.

PFA officials instead attributed the growing demand to franchise these businesses to the rise in the Filipinos’  purchasing power.

Outsourcing

The modern and fast-paced lifestyle of most Filipinos has made them more open to the concept of outsourcing these services as well, the officials added.

They also noted that as the country’s population continued to rise, families were becoming  more concerned with providing better funeral and necrological services for their loved ones.

It helps as well that the franchising industry in the Philippines has matured enough to go beyond the usual food concepts, according to PFA officials.

Lim, who said he had predicted the rise of funeral homes this year,  said several companies had asked about the possibility of franchising, among them Cosmopolitan (Memorial Chapels) based in Cebu province.

Other funeral homes, including Loyola Memorial Chapels and Funeraria Paz, have earlier expressed interest in franchising, he added.

Drug testing

“I would suspect that a bigger business would also be drug rehab centers, along with pet grooming services, pet hotels, and pet funeral homes and cemetery,” said the PFA chair.

Also ripe for the franchising concept are drug testing facilities and drug rehab centers, given that there are only a few such authorized and licensed centers today, said  PFA president Alan Escalona.

Escalona said the nature of drug rehabilitation would make such businesses lucrative.

The surrender of thousands of suspects in drug-related cases would also mean a ready market, given that these suspects have expressed their intention to undergo rehab, he added.

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