Yaroslavl Funeral Director on Business and New Crematorium
An exploration of the reasons behind Yaroslavl«s need for a second crematorium.
It has already been decided: in the coming years, major changes are expected in the funeral sector in Yaroslavl. The city has approved the construction of a new crematorium.
The revenue figures for the municipal funeral service are presented and discussed.
The crematorium will be located at the intersection of Promyshlennaya and Ostashinskaya streets, next to the Ostashinskoye Cemetery.
Service pricing at the Specialized Funeral Service is broken down in the article.
The crematorium will be municipal, meaning it will be transferred to the balance sheet of the «Specialized Funeral Service,» which also belongs to the city administration.
Even a cat has been a long-term «employee» at the funeral service.
Since 2021, the company was considered a loss-making enterprise, but in 2024 revenue increased and net profit soared. We spoke with the director of the service, Alexei Kosogorov, about the current state of the enterprise, the funds they plan to use for the new project, and also discussed why the city needs a second crematorium.
A farewell hall on Magistralnaya Street is used for funeral ceremonies.
«I Headhunted from Grocery Stores»
This report details the current state of the funeral business in Yaroslavl.
The service itself is located on Magistralnaya Street, where its main divisions are housed — from production and the morgue to the funeral hall. Everything is spread across several buildings. The main building houses coffin and wreath production, as well as administrative offices and shops.
Alexei joined the service in 2023, after a scandal involving grave digging. There was a lot to do at the new job — the enterprise was operating at a loss. First, the manager shook up the staff and hired new people.
«I headhunted administrators, tried to lure them even from grocery stores. Once after work I go into a store. And I see the store director there, very active, very competent, and moderately firm with the staff. I invited her to join us, she even worked for a while, but then she was offered two stores to manage instead of one, and I couldn»t compete on salary, so she had to go back,« he commented.
«Headhunting» is a slang expression that means a targeted search to poach a valuable specialist from one company to another.
In the same year 2023, they started renovating the building. They updated the store because the market demanded compliance. It is difficult for municipal companies to compete with private organizations.
«Now we provide a truly high-quality service. People know us and come to us. We collect statistics: 60-70% of customers return to us. We are present on all social networks. Artificial intelligence also works for us, transcribing planning meetings and conferences, analyzing weak points,» the director said.
However, no matter how many orders for attributes and services came in, these funds would not have been enough for construction. Here Alexei Kosogorov does not hide: the municipal enterprise managed to raise money from the sale of a building on Ostashinskaya Street. It is a three-story structure. Recently it was used for storing garbage. The building required more expenses, so they decided to sell it. The deal took place in September 2024.
«The most important thing is that we sold this building not just to sell it, but to later build another facility: a crematorium. We saw that behind the building there was a paint production facility. We knew they were solvent. And we made them an offer. Accordingly, with our building they would get access to the »first line« in front of the road. They latched onto that story. They came to the auction,» the director said.
The building was sold at auction for 180 million rubles ($1.8 million). Thus funds appeared for the new project.
The market valuation of the building was 102 million rubles ($1.02 million).
«That»s the Economy«
In July 2026, at a meeting of the commission on the management and disposal of municipal property of the Yaroslavl municipality, it was announced that the new municipal crematorium could open in the first quarter of 2029. A reasonable question arises: why does the city need a second crematorium when there is already a private one?
The private Yaroslavl crematorium is located in the village of Skokovo in the Yaroslavl district.
Moreover, according to sources of 76.RU, half of those wishing to undergo cremation in the Yaroslavl region are taken to Nizhny Novgorod. This is what most funeral homes do.
«It»s cheaper in Nizhny Novgorod. Even taking into account our agency commission. We gather clients. People say their goodbyes here. Then we place the body in our storage facility. Later in the evening, or maybe the next day, we take them to Nizhny Novgorod,« explained the service director.
According to him, even with the commission, the cost of cremation in Nizhny Novgorod is lower than in Yaroslavl. But everything could change.
«There, in Nizhny Novgorod, cremation costs 27,000 rubles ($270). In the Yaroslavl crematorium — 36,000 rubles ($360). And the conditions are similar: you pay 36,000, you get the urn in a day or two. But if you want it urgently, they can charge 40,000 rubles ($400) or more. To perform a cremation, the furnace must be hot. To preheat the furnace and turn on production capacity, you need about 70 cubic meters of gas,» he explained.
According to stories from people in the funeral industry, a similar situation nearly happened with the centenarian Klavdia Gadyuchkina. The oldest resident of Yaroslavl died at the end of November. They wanted to take her for cremation to another city.
Why Does the City Need a Second Crematorium?
«The Yaroslavl crematorium, if we are talking about the municipal one, arose entirely from the idea of location. If there were no location at the Ostashinskoye Cemetery on the first line of Promyshlennaya Street, the idea would not have arisen in principle. And there, the crematorium and cremation service will sell themselves. The traffic is very high, people see it, plus there is a cemetery nearby where there is a big problem: abandoned graves that are not maintained,» replied the funeral service director.
The project implementation includes the construction of a columbarium and a «Park of Sorrow.»
«Graves become unsightly, and the entire cemetery»s appearance deteriorates because people don«t come to the cemetery often and care for their relatives. But we will build a Park of Sorrow — modern, with paving, lighting, video surveillance, and security,» shared the service director.
According to funeral industry estimates, the crematorium could be used not only by residents of the Yaroslavl region.
«I just know that Moscow, and even St. Petersburg, and other regions transport bodies to Nizhny Novgorod. I think that if we set an attractive price, some of that flow will be redirected to us. With a competitive price, other market participants may use our services,» shared Alexei Kosogorov.
The director says: during the period of losing a loved one, it is important to show maximum care and simplify organizational matters.
«I used to ask employees when I first arrived: »What do you do?« They would answer: »We just process things here.« So you process like containers in a warehouse? You provide a service to people during their most difficult time. You must treat this with maximum empathy. With kindness and competence,» the director shared.
