Goi Funeral

Goi Funeral Research Institute, operating as 'Goi', is a South Korean startup digitizing the funeral service industry to resolve issues of price opacity and information imbalance. Founded in September 2021 by CEO Song Seul-ong, the company provides a comprehensive, on-demand funeral platform. This platform allows users to compare services, get customized quotes, and connect directly with vetted funeral directors. Goi addresses the common problem of upselling and hidden costs in the traditional funeral market by implementing a fixed-price system for all items and services, ensuring clients only pay for what they use.

Song Seul-ong's background provided a unique insight into the industry; his father is a funeral director, and his mother ran a flower shop that supplied funeral wreaths. This firsthand experience, coupled with his own role as a licensed funeral director and a degree in economics from Seoul National University, fueled his mission to modernize the sector. He identified the multi-layered commission structures and inefficient subcontracting as key drivers of inflated costs for bereaved families. The platform's business model centers on creating a direct-to-consumer structure, which significantly reduces costs—by up to 50% compared to major providers—and increases transparency. The company also focuses on ensuring funeral directors receive fair compensation to foster higher quality service and discourage the practice of earning commissions from upselling unnecessary products.

The company's services include matching clients with funeral directors, recommending funeral halls and burial sites from a national database, and providing post-funeral administrative and legal support. In a move to make funeral preparation more accessible, Goi launched a "100-won Sangjo (mutual aid)" service, an affordable monthly plan that allows younger generations to prepare for funeral expenses without a significant financial burden. Since its inception, Goi has gained significant traction, handling over 180,000 customized funeral estimates and 10,000 preliminary consultations by 2023. The startup secured seed funding from Kakao Ventures upon its establishment and later received a 2.5 billion KRW Pre-Series A investment in April 2024 from investors including Fast Ventures and the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund.

Keywords: funeral service platform, digital funeral services, transparent pricing, on-demand funeral, funeral director matching, end-of-life planning, funeral cost comparison, funeral industry technology, bereavement support, memorial services, South Korea, funeral planning, mutual aid, Sangjo, Song Seul-ong