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By Jack Krayenhoff
“THIS is a business – but it is a ministry
also,” says Mike Easton of the Christian Book and Music Centre,
adding: “Other career options could have been more lucrative but I
chose to use my gifts to serve God this way.”
That deliberate choice is a big encouragement to him
just now, when the business climate is hard on bookstores.
For one thing, Christian books are getting much cheaper
– by 40 percent, over the past three years. This means Easton
has to sell more books to make the same amount of money. Also, more people
now buy books via the internet, so that is lost business to him.
Yet a further difficulty is the recent bankruptcy of
R.G. Mitchell (RGM), Canada’s largest wholesale distributor of
Christian books, whose shelves were stocked with Christian books that had
lost a great deal of their monetary value.
Easton was getting half of his books through RGM.
How can his store survive in such an economic climate?
There are some bright spots. For one thing, gifts and jewelry have kept
their value, and they are doing well. Also the Bible department is
thriving, because they are hard to sell over the internet.
People often buy Bibles as gifts, Easton notes.
Consequently, they want to see the print and layout for themselves; they
also feel bewildered by the plethora of translations, bindings and
choice of study Bibles.
Staff assistance is often needed to help the customer
find the one that is most suitable for the occasion. “They may pay a
little less online but there they can’t get the help they
need,” he comments.
Some Bible purchasers are from other cultures, looking
for specialized editions – like a customer who asked for a
‘James Bay’ Cree Bible.
Others say explicitly that they are not believers
– but want to read scripture for themselves.
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“Those are times we feel very reassured we are in
the right place here,” Easton says. “When you put the Bible
into his hands, you know he is going to come closer to faith in
Christ.”
Besides being a resource for Christians’
spiritual life, the store fills another very important function.
“You might say it’s the hub of the
Christian community in town,” Easton says. “Old friends, who
have not seen each other for years, see each other again.
“People are phoning in, or come personally to see
our bulletin board, to find out what speakers or musical events are coming
to town. They come to pick up BC Christian News. And we sell tickets for many special events and concerts
here.”
He concludes: “We feel we help keep the Christian
community close-knit. Many communities, big and small, are losing their
Christian bookstores – but we are grateful for the support we get.
Service and selection gives people a reason to buy from us – so we
can continue to be that light in the community.”
November 2008
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