Creating meaningful memorials
By Cheryl Loban
Images courtesy of JDS Industries
Memorial Day may be over, but the need for meaningful memorial products remains constant. For shops looking to meet that demand while broadening their offerings, everyday staples like picture frames and plaques can be reimagined with treasured photos, favorite poems, scripture, or service programs, turning familiar products into lasting tributes. Add vibrant color through sublimation, UV, or DTF printing, or choose the elegance of laser engraving for a more classic presentation. Wood frames, wood or metal photo panels, and stone, glass, acrylic, or wood plaques are all ideal memorial items. Each one gives you multiple options to offer your customers.
For businesses that are producing awards, many of these items may already be in stock, making memorial products a natural extension of your capabilities rather than an entirely new category. Shadow boxes with keepsakes from hobbies, travel, or milestone moments can help tell a life story. You can also design them to honor fallen first responders with badges, medals, patches, awards, and commendations, creating a display that feels both dignified and deeply personal.
At celebrations of life, giving smaller, personalized memorial gifts has been a trend. Budget-friendly options such as keychains, dog tags, magnets, and sublimated or engraved metal wallet cards or bookmarks offer a simple yet heartfelt way to remember someone special. These keepsakes are easy to share with family and friends. Candles, ornaments, suncatchers, mugs, and jewelry remain popular choices for meaningful keepsakes, combining beauty with sentiment. Whether displayed in the home, carried in a purse or pocket, or given as a thoughtful remembrance at a service, these smaller items can make an impression.
For shops offering sublimation or DTF printing, memory blankets can be an especially touching addition. Pair photos from cherished moments with a favorite quote or familiar phrase, creating something that feels both personal and comforting to wrap up in and hold close. Customers have the freedom to create a tribute that reflects the honored person using a collage of candid family photos or words that instantly invoke a voice or memory. Shops that offer sewing or embroidery can take the idea a step further, creating memory quilts, stuffed animals, or pillows crafted from a loved one’s clothing, transforming everyday garments into treasured heirlooms. Memorial gifts like these often become the most cherished because they connect memories not only to an image, but also to touch and familiarity.
Flag cases remain one of the most meaningful ways to honor military service and veterans. Offered in a range of styles and finishes, they can display a flag on its own or alongside medals, photos, challenge coins, and dog tags, creating a display that reflects both sacrifice and personal history. An engraved plate with a name, rank, dates of service, or a brief message of gratitude can add emotional depth. Flag cases serve as a timeless option to show pride, remembrance, and respect.
Memorial gardens use nature to create a beautiful tribute to loved ones or to mark the location of a tragic event. Memorials such as donated park benches, picnic shelters, playground equipment, plants, or statuary can be made more meaningful with an engraved plate or plaque that names the honoree and donor or tells their story. Expansive gardens and indoor memorial spaces may also call for wayfinding or informational signage, opening the door to even more product possibilities. For engraved signs, plastics offer versatility with hundreds of color combinations.
Cast aluminum plaques are available for wall mounting or with ground stakes and provide an elegant, long-lasting option. Produce full-color signage on ChromaLuxe panels, sublimatable garden stakes, or blanks made for UV printing. Be sure to select substrates that are suitable for the conditions where they will be placed. With thoughtful design and durable materials, memorial gardens can become peaceful places of reflection that remain beautiful and meaningful for years to come.
These same products also translate well into cremation memorials and gifts. This category also offers additional opportunities to provide compassionate service to customers seeking lasting ways to honor loved ones. Jewelry designed with a small compartment for ashes offers family members a meaningful way to share cremains. Bracelets, pendants, or rings give loved ones a discreet and deeply personal keepsake. Miniature urns serve a similar purpose and can be personalized for individual customers or family members. Cremation urns or boxes can be customized directly or finished with an added plate for simple or highly decorative options. You can help families grieving the loss of a beloved pet by offering ways to preserve, cherish, and find comfort in warm reminders of the companionship and joy they brought into everyday life.
Memorial gardens are also a meaningful way to honor a pet, whether through a simple engraved stone in a backyard garden or a more elaborate display. Beautiful pet urns are available in glass, metal, or wood, giving owners multiple options. Pet memorials are not just sentimental; they are an important way to honor a special bond.
For businesses unable to produce any of these items in-house due to production limitations, outsourcing is a practical way to make them available. Samples on your website or displayed in your showroom can make customers comfortable considering items they may not have previously thought of.
People will always memorialize loved ones lost. Adding this niche to your business is a wonderful way to expand what you can offer your existing customers and attract new ones without any upfront cost to you.
Cheryl Loban is the communications specialist at JDS Industries. She joined JDS in March of 2001 as a customer service rep and worked in various roles in that capacity over the past 20+ years. Cheryl moved into her position in the marketing department in February 2019.
