Finding humanity in the business of death
After a little more than a year into her role as Metropolitan’s chief marketing officer, Lindiwe Gumede have started to think a lot differently about death and the business of death.
Talking about death is still uncomfortable in many South African homes, yet it’s a reality every family eventually faces.
For Sandton-based businesswoman Lindiwe Gumede, her work in the funeral insurance industry has shown her just how much honesty and open conversations can ease the pain of loss.
Gumede from Metropolitan said she has come to value the role that empathy and communication play when families are dealing with bereavement.
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“What matters most is making sure people can focus on grieving, not paperwork.” She believes the silence around death often leaves relatives scrambling.
“It is kinder to your loved ones to share information about policies and wishes while you are alive. That way, they are not left guessing during a difficult time.” Her own father, she recalls, once gathered elders to set out his funeral wishes.
“It was forward-thinking, and it made us realise that having these conversations early can remove a lot of stress later.” Gumede has also learned that funerals are about more than money.
Cultural expectations, such as being buried on ancestral land, can add pressure to families. She pointed out that understanding these traditions and preparing for them is as important as financial planning itself.
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