The United Kingdom funeral market is believed to be worth around £1billion yearly, with in excess of 600,000 funerals taking place every year. It is estimated that there are about 4,000 funeral directors currently offering services in the UK, but exact numbers prove to be difficult to pinpoint as the profession is unregulated therefore anyone can enter it. The funeral market in the UK has two industry leaders, The Co-operative Group and Dignity Caring Funeral Services (Dignity Plc). The Co-operative Group has over 800 branches across the UK and conducts around 100,000 funerals a year . They also own the North Eastern Co-operative. Dignity has just over 500 branches and conduct 75,000 funeral a year. Between these two companies, they are currently involved in over 25% of all funerals in the UK. There are several other large groups with large numbers of funerals homes.
Targeting customer needs by the Coop Funeralcare
In evaluating different market segments, the Coop Funeralcare has considered three factors, segment size and growth, segment structural attractiveness, and company objectives and resources. After evaluating different segments, the Coop Funeralcare has decided which and how many segments to target. Target markets consist of a set of buyers who share common needs or characteristics the company decides to serve. The Coop Funeral Care serves all population age groups, in assisting with Funeral arrangement for the deceased. On its website it state that it offers support to the deceased’s relatives when someone dies, in hospital, at nursing home, abroad, or unexpectedly. In addition to these services the Cooperative Funeral Care also sales funeral cover for to UK families.
Because buyers have unique needs, wants and expectations, Coop Funeral care could potentially view each buyer as a separate target market. There many different factors in which relatives, insurance companies, or local authorities take into account when choosing a funeral