Local monument makers face shortages
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Engraving a headstone takes more than a hammer and chisel.
Sandblasting stencil products are in short supply after one of the major manufacturers stopped producing them, creating a backlog for other small companies.
“A lot of times when you have a bit of waste and we didn’t have any. We started using older stencils that had gone bad, but we were able to get around that and maximize what little we had left,” said David Geiger, managing director of Geiger & Sons of Erie.
“It’s tough. It’s tough for customers because they’re paying a lot of money,” said Ben Burton, location and production at Ericson Memorial Studios. “There’s a lot of emotion in this product, especially from the It’s not like you go to Walmart to buy food or a different product.
Like everywhere else in the world, Geiger & Sons and Ericson Memorial Studios had no choice but to raise prices to combat rising shipping costs.
“Something that used to cost $50 now costs $400 or $500. It’s crazy how much it’s increased for something that’s still the same,” Burton said.
“We are looking at some new pricing coming in right now, waiting for a few of our vendors. Unfortunately, like everyone else, prices are going up,” Geiger said.
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Geiger says he expects the issue to affect the industry over the next two years.