Orange County Entrepreneur Overcomes Government Red Tape and Shakes Up Funeral Industry

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif. - Feb. 23, 2015 - PRLog -- The Final Celebration, San Juan Capistrano-based funeral consulting firm, today announced that it has prevailed in an official investigation involving the California State Cemetery and Funeral Bureau (CSCFB), clearing the way for the launch of the only Southern California agency that exclusively combines funeral consulting services and unique event planning.  In December, following founding of The Final Celebration and initial marketing efforts, a complaint was filed with the CSCFB, sparking an official inquiry.  That inquiry resulted in a finding in favor of The Final Celebration, and today the company and its founder is moving forward to provide a novel collection of services that offer respectful and celebratory choices to families who have lost a loved one.

Denise Wilcox, Founder and President of The Final Celebration explained that, unlike most market segments, the funeral industry has changed very little in more than a century and is notorious for its pricing practices.

“This is a secretive and protectionist industry,” Wilcox said. “As we began to compile data on Orange County funeral home costs and services to share with potential clients, we were met with great resistance. One Funeral Director posted a negative review on social media, and someone filed a complaint to the State Bureau. We hadn’t even opened our doors for business yet.”  Based on the last Orange County Funeral Home Price Survey conducted by The Funeral Consumers Alliance, cremation prices in the county varied by as much as 484% and burial prices varied by as much as 545%.

Wilcox continued, “Fortunately the complaint was unfounded. The State has given us the green light, and we’ve been able to focus on the delivery of our primary initiative - saving people money, creating extraordinary events, and lessening the burden of planning for those who have lost a loved one.”

The Final Celebration offers its services to families or loved ones, typically saving them thousands of dollars on traditional funeral and memorial services.  The process is very transparent.  First, a real-time price analysis for up to 8 area funeral homes is presented to the family or loved ones of the deceased. The Final Celebration funeral consultant then meets with the client and fosters an environment where decisions can be simply understood and made – including options that are outside of the scope of the “traditional” funeral home. Once decisions are made, the consultant manages all of the details so the family and loved ones can breathe easier and focus on truly celebrating the life of the deceased and beginning the healing process. In addition to an endless number of celebration options, The Final Celebration can provide a host of concierge services including notifications, travel planning, home clean-outs and more.

Thousands of people are rejecting the age-old funeral traditions of an entrenched and very profitable industry to instead create unique and individual celebrations of life. No two celebrations need be alike. They can be small or large, quietly reflective or raucous, but each one designed to reflect the true essence and personality of the deceased.   The Final Celebration takes an avant garde approach to these events to create remarkable gatherings that would rival even the best wedding plans.  The Final Celebration has brought together over 20 years of event planning experience and combined it with a caring, compassionate, and money saving approach to provide value to those in need.