THE ever-evolving march of technology has made a significant impact on the funeral industry, according to the family behind Kings Funerals.\u00a0Michael, Louise and Beth King were the guest speakers at the Torquay Commerce and Tourism (which has re-incorporated the Bizz3228 group) April networking event, held at RACV Torquay resort.<\/p>\n
Kings Funerals \u2013 which recently opened an office in Torquay \u2013 is Geelong\u2019s largest family-owned and operated funeral business.\u00a0\u00a0The company was originally established in Geelong in 1955 by returned RAAF serviceman Max King, who had already spent several years using his skills in French polishing to produce beautiful coffins.<\/p>\n
Max\u2019s son Michael joined the business in 1983, after training as a funeral director in London, and spent 10 years at Kings Funerals with his father before Max\u2019s death in 1994.\u00a0Michael remains managing director, his daughter Beth is the company\u2019s general manager, and his wife Louise established Louise King Funerals by Women (Geelong\u2019s only all-female funeral service) in 1995.<\/p>\n
In conversation with TCT\u2019s David Isaacs and Cathy Stacey, Michael King said the importance of good customer service had not changed during his time in the business, but telecommunications had changed significantly.\u00a0\u201cWhen mum and dad started the business, we were tied to the telephone, literally \u2013 people just didn\u2019t go on holidays, or if we did, just one went. I can remember the introduction of the fax in the late 1980s; I couldn\u2019t believe what difference that made. But I think the real difference was the introduction of the mobile phone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beth King said funerals could now be broadcast over Skype or webcam, and said the Australian funeral industry as a whole was among the best globally.\u00a0\u201cAustralia and New Zealand are leading the way in funeral service, we\u2019re really fortunate here.\u00a0\u201cWe\u2019re about 20 to 30 years down the road on issues the rest of the world are just starting to grapple with.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
THE ever-evolving march of technology has made a significant impact on the funeral industry, according to the family behind Kings Funerals.\u00a0Michael, Louise and Beth King were the guest speakers at the Torquay Commerce and Tourism (which has re-incorporated the Bizz3228 group) April networking event, held at RACV Torquay resort. Kings Funerals \u2013 which recently opened […]<\/p>\n