Batesville Launches Webinar Series on the Future of the Funeral Home Experience 

Batesville, Ind – January 18, 2025 – Batesville, a leading provider of burial, cremation, and technology solutions in North America, announced a three-part educational webinar series designed to help funeral professionals adapt to changing consumer expectations, enhance the in-person experience, and expand family choice through personalization and merchandising solutions. 

The live webinar series, taking place in January, February, and March 2026, will focus on how funeral homes can align their experiences, offerings, and tools with the needs of today’s families. 

January – Meeting Modern Expectations: Redefining the Consumer Experience Wednesday, January 14, 2026 | 1:00-1:45 PM ET | Q&A to follow 

This session explores how funeral homes can apply retail science principles to evolve the consumer experience. Attendees will gain insight into how technology, product presentation, and physical environments can work together to help families feel more informed, confident, and supported throughout the arrangement process.  

Presented by: Jen Parvin, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, Batesville and Devine Dardanes, Executive Vice President of Business Development, B+N Industries Moderator: Ryan Thogmartin, Founder and CEO of Disrupt Media. 

Registration is available now on Batesville.com. 

February – What’s Next in Family Choices®: Personalization That Tells  Every Story  

Tuesday, February 17, 2026 

This webinar will explore how personalization continues to shape the future of funeral service. The session will examine evolving consumer expectations and how personalization offerings have expanded over time, enabling funeral professionals to help families create meaningful, individualized tributes. 

Presented by: Jeremy Raver, Product Marketing Manager, Batesville

March – Maximizing Cremation Options: Tools and Solutions to Elevate  Your Offerings 

Tuesday, March 24, 2026 

Focused on the growing demand for cremation, this session will examine how modern merchandising tools and solutions can help funeral homes better serve cremation families while creating new opportunities for their business. 

Presented by: Batesville Cremation Team 

Registration 

Registration for the February and March webinars will be available in January of 2026. For a complete listing and descriptions of all education events, visit  

Bastesville.com/Resources/Webinars/ for more information. 

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About Batesville Services, LLC  

Batesville is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, memorialization options and innovative technology solutions. For more than 140 years, Batesville has supported licensed funeral professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love®. A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and remain – a trusted leader in the deathcare  industry. 

I had almost forgot that Hillenbrand Inc., the former parent company of Batesville, had itself agreed to be sold to Lone Star Funds last August (2025).  I was reminded of that transaction from this recent update in Financier Worldwide.

The $3.8 billion transaction “will take Hillenbrand private and marks a significant strategic shift for the Batesville, Indiana-based company” according to the aticle.

Again, according to the article, “Upon closing, Hillenbrand will become a privately held entity and its shares will be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange.”

The article does make these comments about the future closing of this transaction:

“Recent developments suggest the transaction faces challenges. Several institutional investors have filed lawsuits questioning whether the $32 per share offer reflects optimal value, citing Hillenbrand’s recent revenue decline of 24 percent and adjusted earnings per share down 40 percent. Regulatory scrutiny also looms, with approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) required due to potential national security considerations. The merger agreement includes reciprocal termination fees and an outside date of July 2026, allowing time to navigate these hurdles.

Despite these uncertainties, analysts maintain that the acquisition represents a logical conclusion to Hillenbrand’s strategic overhaul. For shareholders, the offer provides a clear exit at a premium, though the timeline may extend if litigation or regulatory delays persist.”

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  Hillenbrand, with different ownership, will apparently continue to be a going-concern operating company, but for me it somewhat brings an end to the historical parent company that made its way in funeral service with a history that can be traced back to John Hillenbrand’s original casket company founded in 1884.

Over the years, since I was growing up as a funeral director’s child, Hillenbrand was synonymous with quality and at one time or another had the brands of Hill-Rom, American Tourister, Medeco, and Batesville under their umbrella organization.  I’ve been a stockholder off and on over my adult life, but did not own stock at the time of the Batesville sale or at the current time of the pending sale of the rest of the company to Lone Star.

Having a history of owning stock with the company has me wondering about the value that stockholders are getting at $32 per share.  The linked article notes that the price per share at $32 is a 37% premium over what the stock was selling for at the time of the this current sale.  However, if you go back to December 15, 2022, when the sale of the Batesville division was announced (the closing was in 2023) the stock price was at $44. . . . . and from my searching and the following answer from Gemini AI, stockholders apparently received no special dividend from that sale:

“Hillenbrand did not issue a special cash dividend to stockholders from the proceeds of the 2023 sale of Batesville. The company used the net proceeds from the sale primarily for debt reduction.”

So, if that is the case, then Hillenbrand stockholders are receiving a $32 per share price a little over three years after the stock was selling at $44 —  that’s a 27% decrease in value after the announced sale of Batesville.  I’m guessing that might be one of the reasons for the potential lawsuits, according to the linked article, about shareholders receiving “optimal value”.

It makes one think. . . maybe Hillenbrand should have sold off the rest of the company and held on to Death Care company Batesville instead of selling Batesville and holding on to the rest of the company. . . . .i.e. maybe Hillenbrand management sold the wrong company back in 2022.

Related —  Hillenbrand’s press release when selling Batesville in 2022.

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Batesville Delivers Confidence, Partnership, and Stability Through North American Manufacturing and Service Excellence 

Batesville, Indiana – October 31, 2025 – Batesville, a leading provider of burial, cremation, and technology solutions, is proud to build on its legacy of craftsmanship and service by delivering the reliability and stability that only a domestic manufacturing company can provide.  

“In today’s rapidly evolving market, funeral professionals need reliability of products and a partner they can trust. Our North American manufacturing and distribution network ensures the stability, quality, and service they rely on, while our innovative solutions help them serve families with care and confidence, now and into the future,” said CEO Chris Trainor. 

Our commitment led Private Label to name Batesville its recommended North American supplier of choice, recognizing the value of a supplier that delivers both stability and excellence. The relationship is designed to provide funeral professionals with flexibility and  peace of mind, supported by Batesville’s long-standing reputation for quality, service, and  innovation. 

“We are proud to work with Flanner Buchanan to support Private Label customers, ensuring continuity of service and supply chain reliability for funeral professionals” said Jenn Parvin, Chief Marketing Officer. “Batesville is dedicated to helping funeral homes streamline operations, grow their business, and elevate the planning experience for families.” 

With North American manufacturing at its core, Batesville provides competitive pricing, a comprehensive product portfolio, and dependable service, equipping funeral homes to serve today’s families while confidently planning for the future.  

ABOUT BATESVILLE SERVICES, LLC  

Batesville (www.Batesville.com) is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions and an unparalleled array of personalization and memorialization offerings.  For more than a century, Batesville has supported deathcare professionals in helping families  honor the lives of those they love.® A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation,  superior customer service, and reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and remain – a  market leader. 

In a new world order that includes cremation, alkaline hydrolysis, and natural organic reduction it is sometimes forgotten that over 1 million caskets are sold in the United States every year.  To that discussion we will bring you some news from a couple of casket companies today.

Batesville, long known for its casket products, is continuing their transition to a total solutions company for funeral homes.  To that end they are introducing their “Remembrance Store” which will be a co-branded turnkey e-commerce storefront designed to generate incremental revenue streams for funeral homes.

According to this recent press release from Batesville,  “families are increasingly turning to outside providers and often shopping online for urns, remembrance jewelry, keepsakes, and other memorial products, leaving funeral homes vulnerable to both lost revenue and relationships”.

According to that press release:

• 58% of pre-need and 64% of at-need families researched funeral products such as urns and jewelry online, highlighting a need for shoppable digital resources consumers can access prior to contacting the funeral home.

• 30% of families buy urns before contacting a funeral home.

• 38% of pre-need and 37% of at-need consumers purchased remembrance products through Amazon.

• 32% of pre-need and 36% of at-need families consider shopping online to be a more ideal place to purchase memorialization products vs. only 20% at funeral homes.

Batesville’s “Remembrance Store”  will give families who prefer to shop online the convenience of purchasing through their trusted funeral home, which would allow funeral homes to capture that online revenue that may be going to other sources at this time.

Private Label Caskets, operating out of Indianapolis, Indiana, recently posted the following notice to their website:

Another Announcement ––  While we didn’t see it as a press release on the Batesville website we did receive the following notice from Batesville on their Facebook page which appeared on our Facebook scroll on October 28:

“We’re honored that Private Label has chosen Batesville as their recommended domestic supplier for their customers.  In times of change, we believe strength comes from partnership — and we’re committed to making this transition seamless for every funeral home they serve.  At Batesville, we’re proud to honor the tradition that defines this profession while driving the transformation prepares it for the future.”

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) recently released this report which predicts that traditional burial in a casket will drop from today’s selection rate of 33.2% to approximately 13.0% –  a number that is lower than was originally thought —  by 2045.

We question what that might mean for casket companies in raw numbers.  Here’s some available statistics and some projected ideas that may give meaning to that answer.

In 2024, the United States reported approximately 3.1 million deaths with a 33.2% burial rate.  Extrapolating those numbers would mean that about 1,029,000 caskets were needed for those burials.

In 2050, projections tell us that the United States will grow to about 380 million people and the death rate per thousand people will grow from today’s level of about 9.06 deaths per 1,000 people to about 10.3 deaths per 1,000 people because of an “older average age”.  Projections tell us extrapolating those numbers would bring about a raw number death total of about 3.9 million residents.  At a 13.0% casket useage that would mean that about 507,000 caskets would be needed for those deaths.

Total US Population
1950 = 148 million, 2010 = 309 million, 2025 = 343 million

So, if those population, death rate, and disposition projections hold up over the next two decades you can see that only about 1/2 of the caskets used today will be needed in 2050.  If those numbers hold up there will probably be casket company consolidations and, as Batesville is doing, branching of the company into other segments.

U.S. Death Rate
1950=9.65/1000, 2010=8.00/1000, 2021=10.40/1000, 2021 represents a rise per pandemic

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Batesville Expands Innovation in Burial, Cremation, Digital Solutions and Personalization with New Product Launches at NFDA 2025 

Batesville, Ind – October 16, 2025 – Batesville, a leading provider of high-quality burial products,  cremation products, and technology solutions will debut its newest offerings at the 2025 National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) International Convention & Expo from October 27-29 in Chicago, Illinois. 

Building on the momentum from last year’s NFDA, Batesville continues to invest in the future of funeral service with back-to-back years of product launches and technology advancements. No other company in the industry is investing more to bring meaningful, affordable innovations that support funeral professionals and the families they serve. 

“Families today want more choices, personalization options, and tools that make the planning process easier,’ said Jenn Parvin, Chief Marketing Officer. “Our newest offerings reflect those needs, combining tradition and care with forward-thinking design and innovation.” 

New Product Highlights Include: 

Burial  

Batesville is proud to introduce three new caskets, thoughtfully designed to provide families with high-quality options as they honor and celebrate the lives of their loved ones. The collection includes the: 

• Two 18-gauge steel selections — the NV1 Tuscany Silver and the NV1 Burnished Silver — engineered with both personalization and quality in mind. 

• Crimson Montgomery, a timeless cherry-stained wood casket that reflects warmth and tradition and serves as a dual-disposition casket for both cremation and burial.

• Batesville continues its long-standing commitment to innovation and personalization with its Family Choices® line, available across all three new caskets. The company is also introducing the LifeStories Memory Frame™, a customizable frame for displaying  cherished photos and mementos, and LifeStories Life Touch™ Interiors, beautifully crafted casket interiors that reflect the life and personality of a loved one. Together, these new offerings further Batesville’s legacy of helping families create meaningful and  individualized tributes.

Technology Solutions to Optimize & Grow Your Business

Batesville remains  committed to delivering technology solutions that help funeral professionals optimize their  operations and grow their businesses. From innovative digital tools to integrated platforms,  Batesville provides resources that make it easier to serve families and strengthen success. 

• Family Choices® Digital Showroom: An intuitive online tool that guides families through a personalized journey through casket, cremation, and customization options. Funeral directors can narrow choices based on families’ specific needs, show 3D renderings in real time, and integrate selections into Batesville Connect® for easy and fast ordering. 

• Batesville Connect®: A centralized hub for funeral professionals that streamlines their Batesville experience. Users get ordering, tracking, and business management tasks, making day-to-day operations more efficient.  

• Halcyon by Batesville: The advanced cloud-based management system suite now includes chain-of-custody body-tracking with QR codes, seamless integration with Express Funeral Funding for faster claims procession, and expanded API connectivity. 

Cremation – Urns and Memorialization 

• The new Gallery Series, a carefully curated selection of on-trend, décor-inspired cremation urns from Batesville, are perfect for your home or permanently displayed in a cremation niche.  

• Family Choices® Urn expansion offers families new opportunities for personalization. These urns can be customized with LifeStories® Medallions and LifeSymbols® 

• The expanded NewPointe® line introduces striking new colors and designs with the Nebula, Atlas, and Starlight collections, offering modern style at a great value. 

These new offerings reflect Batesville’s long-standing commitment to delivering products that combine craftsmanship, innovation, and personal meaning for families and loved ones.  

Visit Batesville at NFDA 

Visit Batesville at booth 815 at NFDA 2025 to experience the new products and technologies firsthand and learn how they can help drive higher satisfaction and profitability.  

The Batesville NFDA booth doubles as a fully functioning Physical and Digital Showroom that allows visitors to experience Batesville’s products firsthand. It will serve as a full immersive experience just as families would experience in your actual funeral home. The booth will feature the latest caskets and urns as well as a Family Choices® Digital Showroom where visitors can explore new tools, technologies, and personalization options. 

Batesville will also feature its Family Choices® Physical Showroom, which builds on the success of last year’s ‘Selection Room of the Future.’ Designed to be light, modern, and highly flexible, this updated showroom concept creates a welcoming environment where families can explore products and personalization options with ease. The innovative layout allows funeral professionals to adapt the showroom to the specific needs of the community. Batesville’s selection room offers a contemporary, thoughtful experience that blends tradition with modern design. 

Join us at the NFDA Welcome Party, Sponsored by Batesville 

Batesville is thrilled to co-sponsor the NFDA Welcome Party on Sunday from 6:00-8:00 PM at the House of Blues, 329 N Dearborn St, Chicago, IL 60654 

You can reconnect with friends, make some new ones, and get geared up for an amazing conference. Enjoy food, music, and engaging conversation as we kick off the 2025 NFDA Conference. 

Educational Session: Reimagining the Physical Showroom

In addition to showcasing its newest products and services, Batesville will present an educational section focused on how funeral homes can better meet the needs of today’s families. The session will be presented by  Jenn Parvin, Chief Marketing Officer of Batesville and by Devin Dardanes, Executive Vice  President of Business Development at B+N Industries. “Meeting Modern Expectations:  Redefining the Consumer Experience” will highlight strategies for blending innovation, inspiration, and affordability within the showroom setting, giving funeral professionals tools to create a more engaging, customer-focused environment. Attendees will learn how thoughtful design, modern merchandising, and flexible presentation options can not only enhance the family experience but also drive greater satisfaction and profitability for funeral homes.  

Join us on Wednesday, October 29, 8:00 AM – 9:00 AM for an informative and innovative session.

ABOUT BATESVILLE SERVICES, LLC  

Batesville (www.Batesville.com) is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North  America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions and an unparalleled array of personalization and memorialization offerings. For more than a century, Batesville has supported deathcare professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love. ® A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and  remain – a market leader. 

Batesville Sells MIS Deathcare Management Solutions Platform  

Batesville, IN – October 15, 2025 – Batesville, a leading provider of burial, cremation, and  technology solutions in North America, announced the sale of its Management Information Systems (MIS) business to PlotBox. PlotBox is a cloud-native software platform for cemetery, crematory, and funeral home management, closely aligned with the capabilities  MIS has developed.  

Effective immediately, this move enables both companies to make strategic investments aligned with their respective areas of expertise. For Batesville, it paves the way for delivering more effective and innovative solutions, particularly designed to support funeral home customers and the families they serve. 

Batesville will continue to invest in technology that streamlines operations and enhances  the planning experience for families. This includes:  

• Halcyon Deathcare Management Software, acquired in 2024, a cloud-based deathcare management platform supporting funeral homes, crematories, pet cremation, and trade services 

• The Family Choices® Digital Showroom, providing families with a consistent, personalized experience that empowers them to make confident decisions and drives stronger product sales 

• The new Remembrance Store™, an E-commerce storefront launching at NFDA, that helps funeral homes meet families’ growing preference for online shopping while creating new revenue opportunities 

“Our focus is on providing funeral professionals with solutions that make their day-to-day  operations more efficient while supporting families through every step of the planning  process.” said Chris Trainor, Batesville CEO. “By driving innovation and personalization  across burial, cremation, and technology, we are equipping funeral professionals with  practical, future-ready tools that deliver greater value to our customers and help position  them for long-term success.”  

PlotBox and Batesville are working together to ensure a seamless transition for MIS  customers, with no disruption to service or support.  

To learn more about Batesville’s burial, cremation, and technology solutions, visit  www.Batesville.com or Halcyon by Batesville at www.halcyondcms.com. 

About Batesville Services LLC  

Batesville is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North America, offering a  comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, memorialization options and  innovative technology solutions. For more than 140 years, Batesville has supported  licensed funeral professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love.^® A  history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and  reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and remain – a trusted leader in the deathcare  industry. To learn more, please call 812.931.5084 or email Media.Inquiries@Batesville.com.

Batesville Announces First Integration with Georgia Electronic Death Registration  System to Streamline Death Record Reporting 

BATESVILLE, Ind., July 28, 2025 – Batesville, a trusted leader in the North American deathcare industry, has announced the first inter-operational integration between its Halcyon deathcare management software solution and the state of Georgia’s Electronic Death Registration System (EDRS). The integration eliminates the need for duplicate manual entry data, improving the speed to process. This helps funeral homes maintain more accurate death records and supports continued electronic death submissions in other states. 

“At Batesville, we believe technology is a powerful tool to deliver value to our funeral home customers and help families navigate the end-of-life journey,” said Sara Gard, General Manager, Halcyon by Batesville. “This breakthrough integration with Georgia improves business efficiencies and processes as Georgia funeral home directors can now enter a decedent’s death certificate and information once, and it will seamlessly integrate from Halcyon directly to Georgia Vital Events Registration System (GAVERS). This saves the funeral home customer an average of 15-30 minutes per case.” 

“The new integration saves my team significant time, increases death record accuracy, simplifies the process, and builds trust during a time of uncertainty,” Everett J. Huffman, Funeral Director & General Manager, Whitfield Funeral Homes & Crematory. “Families now have the peace of mind their loved one’s death records are being submitted without error, and we can focus on supporting them through the funeral process instead of spending time on paperwork.” 

Batesville is a proud participant in a subgroup of the Center for Disease Control’s National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) Modernization Community of Practice. The purpose of this subgroup is to research and review how to modernize electronic death record submission, including improvements to funeral home death record data collection and management. Together, the team developed, tested, and implemented a system where funeral home management systems  could exchange data electronically with a state’s death registry systems to improve the timeliness and quality of death data, create efficiencies for the funeral directors, and accelerate vital records technology adoption. This integration embraces new technology and approaches to death care management. Over the next few weeks Batesville will continue our phased roll out to all Halcyon users in Georgia. 

Batesville has deep customer relationships and a diverse portfolio of solutions across Burial, Cremation, and Technology to meet the evolving needs of deathcare professionals and the families they serve. Our goal is to equip funeral professionals with the tools and resources to support their business and help position them for long-term success. 

For more information, or if you are interested in implementing this in your business, please contact the Halcyon solutions team at 770.877.1158 or visit www.halcyondcms.com. 

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ABOUT BATESVILLE SERVICES, LLC 

Batesville (www.Batesville.com) is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North  America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions, and an unparalleled array of personalization and memorialization offerings.  For more than a century, Batesville has supported deathcare professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love^® and has recently been named one of Newsweek’s Most  Trustworthy Companies in America for the second consecutive year. A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and reliable delivery  helped Batesville become – and remain – a market leader.  

We received a joint press release from both Tukios and Batesville last week that made this statement, “Tukios, a leading provider of website technology solutions for the funeral profession, announced today that it has acquired the funeral home website hosting services from Batesville, a trusted leader in the North American deathcare industry. Effective immediately, the acquisition includes Batesville’s Website Hosting Services, Floral Select, AI Obit writer, and sympathy tree offerings.”

You can read the press release yourself by clicking here.

The press release goes on to mention that Tukios and Batesville have worked together for 12 years and now can concentrate on their core areas of expertise as explained with this quotation from the press release, “This transaction unlocks new opportunities for innovation, enabling both companies to make strategic investments aligned with their core areas of expertise, ultimately delivering better products and services to the deathcare industry.”

Curtis Funk, Founder and CEO of Tukios made this comment about the transaction, “We are laser-focused on creating the best website platform in the funeral profession, and we are honored to carry that mission forward with Batesville’s website hosting services. . .”

Chris Trainor, CEO of Batesville also made a prepared comment in the press release which included, “Through targeted investments, we are strengthening our leadership position in Burial products, broadening our Cremation portfolio, and delivering integrated Technology Solutions that simplify operations and enhance the planning experience for families.  Our goal is to equip funeral professionals with the tools and resources to support their business and help position them for long-term success.”  

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

Funeral Director Daily take:  I think this is a good move for both companies.  In this day and age, I think a laser “focus” on your main or core products is a necessity to keep up with the competition and move your business forward.  I’m guessing that website hosting by Batesville was not their main product category and for Tukios it is.  Tukios can take the Batesville platform and work it into their own process while Batesville can continue to provide technology software solutions to enhance the Tukios products.

For Batesville as CEO Trainor mentions this divestiture of web hosting services allows them to build on and focus on their successful leadership positions in burial products, cremation portfolio, and integrated technology software for funeral homes.

For Tukios this agreement allows them to broaden their website hosting business and bring in more clients for their suite of enhanced products.

My story — Our family funeral business grew from my great-grandfather’s immigration and establishment of a cabinet building shop in 1872.  Out of that start two businesses were developed — a funeral home and a retail furniture store.  In 1989 we decided to sell the furniture business to another retail operator and lease them the building that business was located in.  At the same time, my brother who operated the furniture business joined me in the funeral business.

It was somewhat of a scary proposition because we were selling over 75% of our combined sales volume.  However, the funeral business was more profitable and our new “focus” on that business proved that we could make it even more profitable.  And, not having to worry about a furniture business provided us the “focus” that we believe our funeral clients wanted and needed.

Our funeral home market share grew with this focus and at the end of the day leasing the furniture building to the new operator allowed us to gain value appreciation in that building while the tenants paid the building’s operating costs.  After 34 years of leasing to that company we finally sold the building for that appreciated value.

All in all, I believe “focus” is a major component of customer satisfaction.  It’s interesting that I make that statement because I also believe that “Optionality” in service offerings may be a major factor in gaining volume in the retail Death Care business for traditional funeral homes.

And yet, “focus” has proved that it can be profitable in retail Death Care over the past 30 years by those firms that specialize in retail cremation.

It all proves that Death Care is an interesting and multi-faceted profession with more than one way to present your business to your clientele.

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Batesville Delivers Unprecedented Value with Industry’s First 28” Interior Width Wood Caskets that Fit in a Standard Vault

BATESVILLE, Ind., June 2, 2025 – Batesville, a leading provider of high-quality burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions and a trusted partner to funeral directors, cemeterians and crematory professionals, announced the launch of two new patent-pending oversize hardwood caskets engineered to provide a full 28 inches of interior width, while still fitting into a standard vault. The latest additions to its Dimensions^® oversize casket collection, the Bailey 28 and Clifton 28 include the company’s Family Choices^® personalization features, providing greater flexibility and more value to funeral directors and families.

“We believe all families should have choices in how they remember and celebrate their loved ones, regardless of disposition, product size or personal style,” Jenn Parvin, SVP and Chief Marketing Officer at Batesville. “This year, around 75,000 funerals will require an oversize casket, and we are proud to be able to provide feature-rich, cost-effective solutions to help grieving families have better funeral experiences.” 

Recognized as an innovation leader, Batesville’s patent-pending construction and design provide approximately 1 inch of additional interior width without adding to the exterior dimensions. This allows these caskets to fit in a standard size burial vault, a significant cost advantage for a family compared to the price of an oversize vault. The Bailey 28 and Clifton 28 represent an industry first in the oversize wood category, and complement Batesville’s current Dimensions line, which already includes a selection of 28-inch metal caskets that fit into a standard vault. 

Thoughtful design that delivers unprecedented value.

Research shows that 75% of funeral consumers recognize the value of personalization when choosing a product for a loved one. The Bailey 28 and Clifton 28 give families the personalization options they desire in a larger shell that avoids the added expense of an oversize vault or larger plot, helping to reduce their overall burial costs. Based on two of the company’s most popular wood designs, these new oversize models can be presented from standard Bailey and Clifton caskets, reducing space requirements in the selection room and minimizing inventory costs. 

Both models include Batesville’s proprietary Family Choices personalization features at no additional cost and are suitable for burial or cremation (dual disposition). 

• Bailey 28: The beautiful satin Pecan finish and embossed swingbar are accentuated by a Khaki Linwood fabric interior and Charpente interior system, creating a warm elegant appearance. Constructed of Select Hardwood and Veneers, the Bailey includes four Family Choices corner designs at no additional charge. Available in half and full-couch models.

• Clifton 28: This solid hardwood casket has a Victorian Cherry stain and Rosetan Crepe     interior with a dual overlay for added flexibility. The built-in LifeView^® Decorative Panel can be personalized with family photos, mementos and one of more than 80 LifeStories^® corner or medallion designs. Its competitive price makes it even more attractive to families. 

Both products will be available in CSCs across the US and Canada in early June.

Blending form and function to meet families’ needs. 

Since introducing the Dimensions oversize product line in 2004, Batesville has continued to adapt and enhance this collection with new materials, finishes, designs, and features. Today, the company has a comprehensive line of oversize models in a wide range of styles, price points and sizes, with interior widths from 27 to 33 inches. All Batesville and NewPointe^® metal and wood oversize caskets offer personalization features to enhance family satisfaction.

For more information on the new Clifton 28 and Bailey 28 or other Dimensions products, please visit www.Batesville.com or contact your Batesville sales representative.

ABOUT BATESVILLE SERVICES, LLC

Batesville (www.Batesville.com) is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions and an unparalleled array of personalization and memorialization offerings. For more than a century, Batesville has supported deathcare professionals in helping families honor the lives of those they love.^® A history of manufacturing excellence, product innovation, superior customer service, and reliable delivery helped Batesville become – and remain – a market leader. 

In mid-April I received a press release from Batesville that was titled “Batesville empowers Deathcare professionals with Industry-leading Burial, Cremataion and Technology solutions at 2025 ICCFA Exhhibition.”  Since that time I’ve had this article in my mind and thought now was as good as any time to share some of my historical insights about Batesville.

You see, when I started in the funeral home business it was 1980 and the profession operated in a world of about 90% traditional casketed burials according to at least one source.  At that time what was known as the Batesville Casket Company was a division of publicly traded Hillenbrand Industries and owned a very large percentage of the casketed burial market sales. . . . and if you wanted to purchase a product from Batesville Casket Company, it had better have been a casket because I don’t know if they sold anything else.

Today people operate their funeral homes in North America in an environment that is, at least according to Service Corporation International’s reports, 60% cremation. . . .which would lead one to believe that there are a lot less caskets sold.

Tom Anderson
Funeral Director Daily

So, I found it very interesting at the end of the press release when it said “About Batesville Services, LLC” that this is how the company was described, “Batesville is a recognized leader in the deathcare industry in North America, offering a comprehensive portfolio of burial and cremation products, innovative technology solutions and an unparalleled array of personalization and memorialization offerings.”

When I read that description it made me realize how today’s Batesville has transformed itself from a “casket company” into a modern “solutions company” that is aimed at helping today’s funeral homes in a wholistic fashion.  For instance, the company is no longer just about caskets as they may be one of the largest suppliers of cremation products to the profession today.  In addition, the technology that Batesville supplies to the profession through its Halcyon and MIS Management software are also thought of as industry leaders.

I think it is very interesting how Batesville has “changed with the times” to not only keep itself relevant but to lead and have products and services available for funeral homes when they need them.  If they continue to do this they will be relevant to our profession for a long time.

A Partial Batesville timeline:

• 1884 — Batesville Coffin Company founded
• 1906 — Batesville Coffin Company purchased by John Hillenbrand.  Becomes Batesville Casket Company.
• 1985 —  Forethought Life Insurance established as a direct subsidiary of Hillenbrand Industries.  Focus on Preneed funeral insurance
• 1993 —  Options by Batesville formed. . . .introducing cremation items into the product lines.
• 2023 — Batesville sold by Hillenbrand Industries to Long Range Capital — becomes a private company.

Those are just some of the dates that I remember as milestones during my career as a funeral director.  In my remembering, Forethought Life was an early entrant into the preneed market helping move preneed from bank deposits into insurance.  I also remember the company as being an advocate for allowing funeral directors to offer insurance through their funeral homes.  Believe it or not, at the time in some states, like my native Minnesota, funeral directors were prohibited from being licensed agents for the sale of preneed.  Forethought not only became a great company, but I remember them more so as advocates for the funeral director/agent status.

Forethought today is no longer part of Hillenbrand or Batesville and is a part of the Global Atlantic Financial Group.  It is Global Atlantic that now partners with Service Corporation International as their exclusive preneed supplier.

I also think that Batesville’s creation of the “Options” products was a time when many funeral directors and funeral home owners realized cremation was here to stay.  In my own thought process, when a casket company like Batesville embraced the sale of cremation products it made me look upon the choice as one with staying power.

Final Thoughts — I think it is interesting that Batesville recognizes that the only thing constant with business is “Change is Inevitable”.  They, historically, have seemed to have a good idea of where that change is going — from caskets, to preneed, to cremation, to the present technology needs of funeral homes.  And, it seems that wherever that change is going they want to be on the leading edge of helping funeral homes.

I’ve been told more than once that if the great passenger train companies of the 1940’s and 1950’s had defined the business that they were in as “Transportation” instead of “Railroad” that they would be the companies dominating air passenger service today.  It appears to me that Batesville knows that story and will work to define their business by “whatever helps funeral homes” rather than any other adjective.

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