A Performance Overview: Lee Funeral Home - Little River, SC
One of the questions we commonly hear when speaking with business owners is: how will the firm perform once it is owned by SCI for a few years? Will success continue? Will associates be retained? We measure all of our acquisitions’ performance against expectations for the first three years after we partner. The results are very positive: 8 out of 10 firms exceed or meet our expectations.
Recently, we checked in with Allen Lee at Lee Funeral Home in Little River, South Carolina. His firm joined the SCI family in the summer of 2015.
Background
Allen Lee entered the Little River funeral market in 1995 with the construction of a new 6,500 sq. ft. funeral facility. Allen grew the Lee Funeral Home from 50 calls in 1995 to serving approximately 330 families in 2014. He added a retort and an additional 1,700 sq. ft. crematory facility in 2001 to handle his increasing cremation business.
Allen greatly enjoyed serving families and helping his community, but had no apparent heir to purchase the business from him and his investors, so he had to consider selling the business to an outside party. When the opportunity presented itself, we were excited! SCI had recently acquired White Funeral Homes in Shallotte and Southport, North Carolina, so this would add another highly respected firm to our regional family.
Assimilation
We understand change can be intimidating and overwhelming for some people, so we were happy that Allen planned to continue serving families for several years. In fact, Allen formally agreed to be the Location Manager for at least the first two years after we closed the transaction. Allen’s desire to continue managing the daily operations of the business made a transition much easier for both the employees and the community.
While there were certainly some changes to backoffice functions and reporting, the firm still had all the same faces and its unique culture. Of course, not all owners want to fill the same role as Allen did after an acquisition, and that’s ok. Regardless of the roles of owners post-acquisition, the faces and culture of the business remain the same, which provides continuity and comfort to the employees and the community.
Business Growth
There is always some concern about a slowdown after we acquire a business, since there is a transition period. During this time, people are learning new systems, generating different reports, and getting used to the idea of new ownership.
While there was an initial decrease in sales averages, we’ve seen an increase of 7% over the last three years. Even more impressive is that with Allen’s leadership and guidance, we are on track to see a 29% increase in volume (95 additional calls) from 2014 to 2018. This is a result of the continued focus and hard work of Allen and all the employees of Lee Funeral Home. We greatly appreciate these efforts and are proud to have them as part of the SCI family.
Recently, we checked in with Allen Lee at Lee Funeral Home in Little River, South Carolina. His firm joined the SCI family in the summer of 2015.
Background
Allen Lee entered the Little River funeral market in 1995 with the construction of a new 6,500 sq. ft. funeral facility. Allen grew the Lee Funeral Home from 50 calls in 1995 to serving approximately 330 families in 2014. He added a retort and an additional 1,700 sq. ft. crematory facility in 2001 to handle his increasing cremation business.
Allen greatly enjoyed serving families and helping his community, but had no apparent heir to purchase the business from him and his investors, so he had to consider selling the business to an outside party. When the opportunity presented itself, we were excited! SCI had recently acquired White Funeral Homes in Shallotte and Southport, North Carolina, so this would add another highly respected firm to our regional family.
Assimilation
We understand change can be intimidating and overwhelming for some people, so we were happy that Allen planned to continue serving families for several years. In fact, Allen formally agreed to be the Location Manager for at least the first two years after we closed the transaction. Allen’s desire to continue managing the daily operations of the business made a transition much easier for both the employees and the community.
While there were certainly some changes to backoffice functions and reporting, the firm still had all the same faces and its unique culture. Of course, not all owners want to fill the same role as Allen did after an acquisition, and that’s ok. Regardless of the roles of owners post-acquisition, the faces and culture of the business remain the same, which provides continuity and comfort to the employees and the community.
Business Growth
There is always some concern about a slowdown after we acquire a business, since there is a transition period. During this time, people are learning new systems, generating different reports, and getting used to the idea of new ownership.
While there was an initial decrease in sales averages, we’ve seen an increase of 7% over the last three years. Even more impressive is that with Allen’s leadership and guidance, we are on track to see a 29% increase in volume (95 additional calls) from 2014 to 2018. This is a result of the continued focus and hard work of Allen and all the employees of Lee Funeral Home. We greatly appreciate these efforts and are proud to have them as part of the SCI family.
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