From Our Family’s

Loss, to a Family Legacy

My Dad - he passed away January 1st 1995, he was always “my why”

Although Simply Funerals began ten years ago, the reason behind it reaches back almost 35 years.

When my father died in Australia, serious complications with the embalming and repatriation process meant that by the time he arrived home, we were no longer able to view him. We had to say goodbye with a closed casket, without the opportunity for that final moment of connection and closure. The experience stayed with our family for many years.

Around 20 years later, my grandfather died. Our children are Māori, and spending time with a loved one after death is an important and familiar part of saying goodbye. However, the funeral home we used placed strict limitations on when our family could visit him. The available days and times did not meet our family’s needs, making an already painful experience even more difficult.

Those two experiences shaped our belief that families deserved another way—one centred on time, access, understanding, cultural respect and genuine personal care.

Where It All Began

2016 - Our first, “Melrose Funeral Home” a little 70m2 house in Tauranga

Ten years ago, my husband Phil, my mum Gayle and I opened our first funeral home in Tauranga. We began in a small 70-square-metre house that we transformed into Melrose Funeral Home.

We had no idea where the journey would take us. During our first year, just 12 loved ones were entrusted to our care. Every family mattered deeply, and every farewell reinforced why we had chosen this path.

We listened, learned and worked hard to create the kind of funeral home we wished our own family had experienced—somewhere people would be given time, treated with compassion and supported in saying goodbye in the way that felt right for them.

Growing With Our Communities

Over the following years, our family of funeral homes gradually grew to include Simply Cremations Bay of Plenty, Coromandel and Waikato, Simplicity Funeral Home, Cambridge Funeral Home, Waihi Funeral Home and Te Awamutu Funeral Home.

What began in that little Tauranga house has grown into a family of funeral homes now caring for approximately 850 loved ones each year.

Growth was never simply about becoming bigger. It was about being able to provide more families and communities with the personal, culturally respectful care that inspired us to begin.

Bringing Cremation Into Our Care

In 2020, we built our own crematorium and imported our flame cremator from Florida. Owning and operating our own facility meant that loved ones entrusted to us could remain in our care throughout their complete journey.

Over the following five and a half years, our team carried out more than 4,500 cremations, treating every person with dignity, accuracy and respect.

We are now preparing to introduce water cremation to the North Island, providing families with a gentle and environmentally considerate alternative to traditional flame cremation.

Three Generations of Care

Simply Funerals began with Phil and me, my mum and our seven children. All seven of our children have worked within the funeral profession at some stage, and four remain actively involved in the family business today.

Three generations of our family have helped shape Simply Funerals. Each person has brought something different, but we all share the same belief: caring for someone after death is an immense privilege, and supporting their family requires patience, respect and genuine compassion.

At a time when many funeral homes have become part of large corporate groups, including overseas-owned companies, we are proud to remain family-owned and operated.

What Has Never Changed

Our buildings have grown, our team has expanded and the number of families we support has changed enormously since that first year—but the reason we began remains at the centre of everything we do.

We know what it feels like to be denied the goodbye your family needed. That experience continues to guide the way we care for every loved one and every whānau entrusted to us.

We will give you time. We will listen. We will respect your culture, beliefs and wishes. And throughout every stage of the farewell, our family will be here to care for yours.

Lots of Love

Carla x