U.S. Monument Makers Confront Tariff Costs and Rising Cremation Rates

WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA — Small family-run companies that carve granite memorials for U.S. cemeteries are facing two powerful headwinds: escalating import tariffs and a rapid cultural shift toward cremation.

John Dioguardi, whose family has operated Rome Monument in western Pennsylvania since 1934, said both trends are eroding demand for the traditional headstones that have defined his business for nearly a century. Although the company once relied heavily on imported Chinese granite, President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs forced Dioguardi to move roughly two-thirds of his supply chain to India. Even so, he is paying higher material costs and is unsure how long the firm can absorb them without raising prices.

Granite comes in distinct colors and patterns found only in specific parts of the world, such as India’s multicolored aurora stone. Bringing production entirely to the United States would still be more costly, Dioguardi said, because domestic labor expenses outweigh any tariff savings. “We have nothing like that in our country,” he noted of certain foreign stone varieties.

The pinch is spreading across the memorial industry, a network dominated by long-standing, blue-collar enterprises. In Cleveland, Jim Milano of Milano Monuments reported paying about 29 percent in customs duties and taxes on a container of Chinese granite in September 2024. When he imported a similar shipment roughly a year later, the rate had climbed to 59 percent. Milano said he has taken a personal pay cut to cover the difference, fearing the backlash if costs are passed directly to grieving families.

Milano and other suppliers are now considering contract addendums that would allow price adjustments if tariff levels change between the time a stone is ordered and when it arrives at a U.S. port. The long lead times common in custom monument work—often several weeks or months—mean an unexpected tariff increase can undermine the margin on an entire order.

Industry uncertainty has grown to the point that some businesses have postponed routine marketing tasks. PS Granite, a wholesaler in Kentucky, delayed printing its annual product catalogs because operations chief Parthi Damo could not be sure current prices would remain valid. He is weighing whether to issue updated materials every 60 days instead of once a year.

Nathan Lange, president of Monument Builders of North America, said the roughly 400 firms represented by the trade group have existed for an average of more than seven decades. Maintaining that longevity, he warned, is becoming more difficult because tariff rates can swing with little notice.

While the trade dispute has raised operating costs, a separate trend is redefining the very market for memorials. The national cremation rate surpassed 60 percent in 2024, up from under 40 percent 15 years earlier, according to the Cremation Association of North America. The organization projects that two out of every three deceased Americans will be cremated between 2025 and 2029. In Canada, the five-year average is expected to top 80 percent.

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Faced with shrinking orders for conventional headstones, monument makers are introducing new offerings tailored to cremation. Dioguardi has expanded his service radius beyond western Pennsylvania and promotes pedestal monuments designed to hold cremated remains. He recently collaborated with a cemetery to install a “rainbow bridge” dedicated to pet ashes, reflecting another niche growth area.

The challenge, Milano explained, is that raising prices to offset tariffs could inadvertently accelerate the shift toward cremation. Consumers weighing the cost of a full-sized granite gravestone against less expensive urns or spreading ashes might view increased monument prices as an incentive to forgo physical memorials altogether.

Data compiled by the U.S. International Trade Commission indicate that most import-related tariff costs are borne initially by businesses, not foreign exporters. Monument companies argue that their smaller volumes and lower margins leave them with less flexibility than large retailers to absorb unexpected expenses. They also contend that asking families to pay hundreds or thousands of additional dollars after a loved one’s death risks damaging hard-earned reputations.

Even so, strategies to stay viable vary. Some firms are exploring acquisitions to achieve economies of scale, while others are diversifying into engraving, landscaping or columbarium construction. Marketing efforts increasingly emphasize the emotional value of a permanent marker, a concept industry veterans fear is waning among younger generations.

Dioguardi believes Rome Monument can continue in its current form for another decade, but he wonders what will remain beyond that horizon if cremation keeps climbing and trade policy remains unpredictable. From the elaborate pyramids of ancient Egypt to today’s scattering of ashes without a marker, public preferences for memorialization have evolved dramatically. Whether future families will still desire a granite tribute—or even a simple stone pebble—remains an open question for an industry built on the permanence of rock.

Crédito da imagem: Istock | Getty Images