We Quit Our Jobs To Run A Cemetery Business – It Now Brings In $6 Million/Year
Shayda Frost and Timothy Amoui unexpectedly inherited a cemetery business and grew it to $6 million per year across four cemeteries. Despite having no industry experience — she in film, he in crisis PR — they modernized outdated operations and reinvested all profits back into the business. They view cemeteries primarily as spaces for the living, focused on community and heritage.
Summary
Shayda Frost (39) and Timothy Amoui (36) stumbled into the cemetery business when it was passed down unexpectedly, despite universal advice from industry professionals to sell it. Shayda had grown up with the business in the family but never expected to run it, while Tim came from a crisis PR background. Despite their lack of experience, Tim's enthusiasm and determination to understand the business convinced Shayda to commit to the venture.
Their portfolio includes Lincoln Cemetery, Monte Vista, Washington Memorial Gardens, and Dawn Memorial Park, collectively generating over $6 million annually. Revenue comes from four core products: burial plots, burial vaults, professional services (opening and closing of gravesites), and memorials/headstones. All profits are currently reinvested back into the business with a nonprofit-like philosophy focused on improving the grounds and strengthening perpetual care funds.
When they took over, the business was operating as if it were 1974 — no emails, paper records dating back decades, and rolodex-style death cards. A major digitization project, initially estimated at six months, has stretched past two and a half years and is only halfway complete. The grounds are considered their number one brand asset, requiring significant annual investment managed by a key employee named Dennis.
The transcript also touches on Hollywood Cemetery, a non-perpetual care cemetery that has been abandoned since the 1960s, suffering from neglect linked to white flight and lack of investment. Volunteer groups have been helping restore it. The couple emphasizes that cemeteries are fundamentally for the living — families return for anniversaries, birthdays, and even picnics — and that growth is essential to fulfilling their mission of paying staff well, hiring more, and sustaining perpetual care funds.
Key Insights
- Shayda and Tim were universally advised by every industry professional and contact they had to sell the cemetery business, being told it was too complicated and they lacked the knowledge to run it — yet they chose to keep it anyway.
- Tim argues that the cemetery business's century-long track record of never failing was a key reason to keep it, framing its stability as a major business opportunity rather than a sleepy legacy asset.
- When they took over, the business had no email addresses for staff and was operating with paper records and physical rolodex death cards, effectively frozen in a pre-digital era — a state Shayda describes as being 'transported back into 1974.'
- Shayda argues that cemeteries are fundamentally for the living, not the deceased, because it is the surviving family members who return year after year on anniversaries, birthdays, and holidays — framing cemetery investment as serving community grief and memory.
- Hollywood Cemetery has been abandoned since the 1960s due to white flight and the absence of a perpetual care fund, illustrating how the lack of a financial endowment mechanism can lead to complete neglect of a cemetery over decades.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] We at length discussed if we should just sell. In fact, everyone we knew, every industry professional, every contact we had, everyone said, sell it. It's too big. You guys don't know anything about the space. It's very complicated space. You don't want this. Sell it. There's one fact in life that you cannot deny. We are all going to die. So we want families to build that heritage at all of our cemeteries. And in order to do that, we've got to remain relevant to the future generations. I'm Shayda Frost and I'm 39 years old. [0:31] I'm Timothy Amoui and I'm 36 years old. And our cemetery business brings in over $6 million a year. So that…
Full transcript available for MurmurCast members
Sign Up to AccessMore from CNBC Make It
I Bought An Abandoned Church For $45K & Spent $194K Making It A Home
A woman purchased an abandoned 128-year-old church in Michigan for $45,000 and invested $194,000 in renovations to transform it into her dream home, a 'chouse.' She completed major structural work including re-roofing, rewiring, and leveling the floor while repurposing original church elements like pews and stained glass windows, with plans to eventually convert the adjacent parsonage into a bed and breakfast.
How Imax profits from theaters it doesn't own
IMAX is experiencing record profitability despite owning only one theater, generating $410 million in revenue in 2025 through two main business models: content solutions (12.5% of box office receipts) and technology licensing via revenue-sharing agreements with theater chains. The company's success hinges on its brand reputation and audience demand for the IMAX experience, which has created a self-reinforcing cycle benefiting filmmakers, theaters, and IMAX itself.
This 18-year-old buys abandoned storage units — his side hustle brings in $135K/year
An 18-year-old entrepreneur runs a side business buying and reselling items from abandoned storage units, generating $135,000 in gross revenue and $82,000 in pre-tax profit in 2025 while spending 20-25 hours per week. He invests most profits into ETFs and has generated $85,000 in revenue by mid-July 2026.
Why More Americans Are Stuck In Car Loans
Americans are increasingly trapped in longer car loans averaging over 70 months, with many rolling negative equity from previous vehicles into new loans. This creates a cycle of permanent car debt, with buyers paying significantly more in interest while focusing on monthly payments rather than total purchase costs.
We Left The U.S. And Bought A House In Spain For $72K
An American couple moved to southern Spain, purchased a house for $72,000 and renovated it for $60,000 to improve quality of life and affordability. They discuss their mortgage-free lifestyle, lower living expenses, and how raising their daughter in Spain offers different cultural values and community safety compared to the U.S.