[Edaily Reporter KIM EUNG-TAE ] Major shifts are underway in the funeral service industry. While WOONGJIN Freed Life has maintained its position as the industry leader, Kyowon Life has overtaken Boram Group to take second place in terms of advance payments. COWAY(021240), which entered the funeral service industry for the first time last year, is rapidly penetrating the market, securing 6 billion won in advance payments in just one year. As consumer preference grows for conversion services—which allow funeral funds to be used for other services such as travel and education instead of funerals—analysts note a pronounced trend of customers gravitating toward companies that offer a variety of such conversion services.

According to the Fair Trade Commission and the funeral service industry on the 29th, the total amount of advance payments in the funeral service industry as of March this year stood at 11조3544억원, a 9.9% increase compared to the same period last year (10조3348억원). During the same period, the number of funeral service subscribers rose by 17.8%, from 960만명 to 1131만명.

As demand for funeral services grows amid an aging population, the increase in prepaid funds is particularly pronounced among major companies. WOONGJIN Freed Life, the industry leader, maintained its top position with prepaid funds totaling 2.9725 trillion won, a 13.4% increase compared to the same period last year (2.6221 trillion won). It is reported that WOONGJIN Freed Life became the first funeral service provider to surpass 3 trillion won in advance payments last April.

Boram Group (Boram Funeral Services Development, Life, Leaders, People, Anycall, Siloam, and Plus) and Kyowon Life, which had been locked in a fierce battle for second place, swapped positions this year. As of March, Kyowon Life’s advance payments stood at 1.7369 trillion won—a 16.5% increase from the previous year (1.4907 trillion won)—propelling it into second place. The Boram Group’s advance payments totaled 1.6817 trillion won this year, a mere 7.2% increase from the previous year (1.5676 trillion won), causing it to drop one spot to third place.

The notable growth in advance payments at WOONGJIN Free Life and Kyowon Life is attributed to the effective expansion of conversion services through their affiliate companies. After being incorporated into the WOONGJIN Group last year, WOONGJIN Free Life diversified the benefits of its conversion services by leveraging synergies with other WOONGJIN Group affiliates. Moving beyond its traditional business structure centered on funeral services, the company introduced the industry’s first charter cruise travel packages and diversified its conversion services to include language study abroad, healthcare, and weddings.

Kyowon Life has also established a variety of conversion services by leveraging the assets of its affiliates, such as Kyowon Wealth (home appliances), Kyowon Red Pen (education), and Kyowon Tour (travel). It also provides membership benefits related to hotels, resorts, and home appliance rentals owned by the Kyowon Group. A Kyowon Life official explained, “In addition to travel conversion services, Kyowon Life is expanding the scope of its conversion services through strategic collaborations with group affiliates and companies in other industries,” adding, “Membership benefits, such as discounts at hotels operated by the Kyowon Group, are emerging as a key growth driver.”

COWAY, which entered the funeral service industry last year, is also experiencing rapid growth. As of March this year, advance payments for COWAY Life Solution—COWAY’s funeral service subsidiary—stood at 6.1 billion won, a nearly 60-fold increase from the previous year (100 million won). Although COWAY Life Solution officially launched in May of last year, it is capturing customers by leveraging its high brand recognition and bundled rental appliance products, despite being in the early stages of its business. A COWAY official stated, “The growth rate of COWAY Life Solution’s prepaid funds is about two to three times faster than the sales trends of competitors during their early business stages,” adding, “While sales of COWAY’s combined rental appliance and funeral service packages have increased, we have differentiated our services through membership benefits—such as healthcare—that reflect the needs of senior customers.”

As these companies penetrate the funeral service market by leveraging synergies with their affiliates, traditional funeral service providers such as Boram Group are responding by expanding partnership-based services through their partner networks. Last month, Boram Group partnered with SamsungElectronics(005930)to launch the “B&Care Pack,” a combined funeral and home appliance product, and is also preparing to launch “Boram Tour,” a brand for travel conversion services. A Boram Group official said, “We are continuing to expand our conversion services through partnerships,” adding, “We will also introduce Boram Tour as a travel product brand related to conversion services.”