Last Friday, October 1, 2010, Paul Cooper, Chairman of the Wilbert Funeral Services Inc.(WFSI) board, accepted the resignation of WFSI President and CEO Tony Colson. Tony has elected to leave Wilbert and take a position as President and CEO for a new casket company that is based in Detroit called Genesis Casket Company, which is a subsidiary to the parent company Gestamp North America (Gestamp Corporation).
In a quote from the Memorial Business Journal, Colson said this of his new company, “The company is an entirely new venture dedicated to providing caskets of world class quality and service.?
Colson served as director of sales for Batesville Casket Company from 1988-2004. He joined Wilbert in April 2008 after two years as vice president and general manager of Pella Window & Door Corporation. Colson had also been a consultant for Legacy Management Partners in 2005-06.
Wilbert Funeral Services Inc, is in the same position as most casket companies, numbers are down, way down. If a funeral director doesn’t sell a casket, then there is no need for a burial vault.
Wilbert is now left with no CEO while they face their newest competitor, Batesville, as they roll out their plastic Endura burial vault.
