Zondervan to sell Biblica’s outreach Bibles Print
Written by Christine D. Johnson   
Tuesday, 04 November 2014 04:27 PM America/New_York

Nonprofit’s CEO also transitions to HarperCollins Christian

Biblica Logo RGBHarperCollins Christian Publishing (HCCP) has taken on Biblica's direct and trade sales business in the U.S. and Canada. Biblica CEO Doug Lockhart also has made the move to HCCP as senior vice president of Bible marketing and outreach.

Biblica is the copyright holder and worldwide publisher of the New International Version (NIV) Bible translation, and licenses its North American publishing rights to Zondervan. Under the agreement announced in early October, HCCP has assumed sales of Biblica’s low-cost outreach Bibles through Zondervan publishing.

Biblica is refocusing on translating and publishing Bibles in the 100 most widely spoken languages and helping people to experience Scripture more deeply.

“Our partnership with Zondervan spans over four decades, during which time our two organizations have worked extremely well together," said Scott Bolinder, executive vice president of Biblica. "While any change of this magnitude is complex, it makes perfect sense for us to move this area of our ministry to HCCP. They’ll be able to give customers the best possible service, and Biblica will be able to put all of its energies into Bible translation and publishing, as well as our renewed efforts to help people read the Bible well through ministry programs like Community Bible Experience.”

Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO atHarperCollins Christian, added: "Growing our Bibles and biblical resources continues to be a core focus for our business, and it is where our mission—to inspire the world by meeting the needs of people with content that promotes biblical principles and honors Jesus Christ—is grounded. We are committed to serving Biblica’s current customers and ensuring a smooth transition.”

HCCP absorbed the sales of the NIV, NIrV (New International Reader’s Version) and NVI (Nueva Versión Internacional) outreach Bible lines. —Johnson