He Wants To Lower The Cost Of Dying

 

"In this world," said Ben Franklin, "nothing is certain but death and taxes." Richard Jongordon can't lower taxes, but he is trying to help people handle the high cost of death.

Jongordon, president and owner of the San Francisco-based Early American Coffin Co., the first retail coffin outlet in at least 50 years, believes that average casket costs -- which range from $500 to $3,000 (and can go as high as $13,000) -- capitalize on the consumer's bereavement. He wants to give customers lower prices and a wider choice.

A coffin is "nothing but a hunk of tin that the mortuary is spraying to look like bronze," he claims. In contrast, the Early American Coffin Co.'s retail outlet, open since September 1981, offers three styles of wooden coffins ranging from $75 to $245. The German style is hexagonal; the English is modeled on an Egyptian sarcophagus; and the American Army coffin is a rectangular pine box.

A display room gives customers the opportunity to "mosey around a bit" and shop, says Jongordon, who sells four to five coffins each week. His customers use them primarily for precremation funeral services.

The 52-year-old entrepreneur describes public opinion as "appreciative" and reports that he has received at least 20 inquiries from people who are interested in setting up their own coffin shops. So far, Jongordon has no plans for franchising.

His company philosophy, he says, is reflected in its name, Early American, which to him means modesty and simplicity. There are many people, he adds, "who would like to be buried in a pinewood box. That's an American tradition like red, white, and blue."