Traditionally, the final sendoff of a loved one was characterised by a sad procession of weeping mourners and any available mode of transportation, nothing fancy, as family and friends wore long faces.
That’s all changed. It is now possible to give your beloved a dignified and elegant sendoff ride in a luxurious state-of-the-art SUV. Delights funeral service providers based in Eldoret town recently launched a brand spanking new hearse to cater for a luxurious last journey.
The premium hearse, a top-of-the-range, range rover limousine has caused a buzz on social media. According to the Delights funeral services, it will cost a family approximately Sh500,000 to hire its services.
“Those who appreciate and want to offer their loved ones a last ride in style approach us; we chisel the figure closer to their budget. Sh500,000 doesn’t only get you the car, It comes as a package,” says Harrison Muchiri, a director in the company.
Apart from the SUV, the package also includes an elegant service vehicle for close family, a casket, a trolley, a rolling device, a gazebo and a red or green carpet.
According to the businessman, business has been booming for them.
“We are actually stunned. We didn’t expect this kind of positive feedback,” he reveals. He further states that various renowned personalities are on their clients list with the most recent being Mama Hannah Mudavadi, mother to ANC leader and former Vice President Musalis Mudavadi’s mother.
“The call from Nairobi came in as a surprise. However, we didn’t use the Range Rover on that occasion. Instead, we used our Jaguar limousine with a similar status statement but we delivered our promise,” Muchiri indicates.
Apart from the Range Rover, the company has a fleet of elegant fuel guzzlers to their name including a Jaguar limousine, Mercedes Benz, Land Cruisers and minibusses. Curious on what tickled his fancy to start up such a business and fashion it luxuriously, Harrison explains that his dad’s send-off in 2002 left a bitter taste in his mouth and he decided to change the scope by venturing into the business.
“We ferried my father in a pick up yet he was a respectable man in the community. That really bothered me and I promised to organise send-offs befitting the status of the individual or their family including all the frills that go with it.”
The company, now barely six years old, has grown in leaps since its inception. The directors say they started off with a normal van before expanding it into an empire of fleet cars including chariot-driven wheels.
“Many people believed in us and our contact base and referrals broadened. We have a skilled team that doesn’t leave until the body has been lowered and job done,” Muchiri adds.
The Range Rover is an ex-UK vehicle with no modifications done to it.
