Atlanta couple defies industry advice to retain and modernise inherited cemetery business

Shayda Frost and Timothy Amoui, an Atlanta-based couple, have retained Lincoln Memorial Group, a four-cemetery business inherited from Frost’s father in 2023, despite widespread advice from industry contacts to sell. The couple, who previously worked in film production and financial public relations in Los Angeles, left their full-time jobs to manage the Atlanta-based operation after Frost’s father died unexpectedly. The business, which operates in the death care sector, reported approximately $6.3 million in revenue and $1.7 million in net income for 2025.

The company, originally founded by Frost’s grandmother in the 1970s, was operating with significantly outdated infrastructure when the couple took over. Employees communicated via intercoms, and critical records were stored in physical filing cabinets and Rolodexes. Frost described the initial experience as stepping into a time machine, noting that the business was essentially a legacy operation requiring immediate modernisation. The couple is currently digitising hundreds of thousands of paper records while maintaining analog systems to ensure operational continuity.

Frost, 39, and Amoui, 36, have positioned the business as a long-term asset, contrasting it with sectors vulnerable to short-term economic shifts or technological disruption. Cemeteries operate on 20 to 30-year timelines, focusing on pre-need sales where burial arrangements are purchased years in advance. Frost referred to the business as “innovative real estate,” selling burial plots, vaults, headstones, and cemetery services. This stability has allowed the couple to pursue a growth strategy that includes acquiring additional cemeteries and potentially adding funeral homes to their portfolio.

The decision to retain the business aligns with broader trends in the U.S. small business sector. According to McKinsey, roughly 6 million small to medium businesses are expected to change hands by 2035, driven by an aging owner demographic with few younger successors. The National Funeral Directors Association notes that there are over 15,000 funeral homes across the U.S., with 75% privately owned. Mordor Intelligence estimates the U.S. funeral homes market will grow from $20 billion in 2026 to $27 billion by 2031, providing a favourable backdrop for consolidation and modernisation.

While many industry professionals advised the couple to liquidate the asset, Frost and Amoui focused on assessing the company’s liabilities and growth potential. They cited the emotional connection with clients, such as attending family gatherings on cemetery grounds, as a key factor in their decision to stay. By transitioning from paper-based systems to digital operations, the couple aims to stabilise the company and improve profitability, positioning Lincoln Memorial Group for expansion in a consolidating market.