Dead good business idea

[Brown and Boris]

Obviously not for me as I have the day job but I wanted to see if anyone could see the market/pitfalls:

Some years ago my old Dad was unemployed and spent his time tending the graves of our numerous relatives in the local cemetry. He hit on the idea of offering a grave maintainence service. Sadly his health gave up and he ended up in the cemetry himself butI always wondered if the his idea had legs, as people struggle to get the the graves and especillay now we have the net and more peope live miles from the place their parents/grandparents are buried. His idea was to offer an annual maintainence contract: periodic tidy ups in the summer, extra for a proper spring tidy and stone cleaning with the option of a new spring bulbs and summer bedding plants. He thought there were enough old dears who would pay to know their loved ones grave was always tidy. He worked it out he could live from just 2 local cemeteries locally.

Now the web has caught on I can see a market for online buying, birthday flowers, wreaths, pics of the grave by email at key times, with online payment by credit card. With a bit of careful weedkiller application and perhaps a bit of mulching and weed suppressant matting as long as the council/church rules were obeyed it could work? Advertise through local rags, leafletting housing areas around cemetreries, old peoples homes, OAOP clubs, parish mags, church notice boards, undertakers on a cut.

Say £80-£100 per annum a grave ( £1.50 -£2 a week). Spending 20 minutes a month on each grave

So why isn't anybody doing it? What's the obvious problem or mathematical errors am I missing?

[sam.r]

I thought the same thing last weekend when I was visiting a graveyard.

Not to the extent of your old mans idea but mainly washing the graves... Most of the light coloured stones are BLACK, even some that had flowers and were being seen to regularly we in a poor state...

I think its a great idea. Must be something already no?

Sam

ETA just re-read the title

Edited by sam.r on Wednesday 27th August 22:42

[jamesuk28]

I had the same idea 11 years ago when my mum died. Needless to say somebody else had the same idea many years before me.

[sam.r]

A quick google shows LOADS of people offering it... Maybe people are just tight?

[pgilc1]

I think its a good idea, but introducing yourself to prospective customers could be tricky....

'hello i know you're here grieving a relative but would you like me to power hose the headstone once a month for a tenner?'