Online retailing growth, economic downturn cited as key reasons

Two leading church-affiliated stores recently closed.

Regarded as one of the largest Christian bookstores in the country and advertised as the largest in the South, Pathway Bookstore in Cleveland, Tenn., shut its doors Jan 14.

Operated by the Church of God (CoG), the Pathway store ran for many years in a smaller location at the organization’s publishing house building in Cleveland before the Pentecostal denomination opened a reported $2.5 million, 30,000-square-foot facility in August 1999.

“Due to the uncertainty of the economy and after much deliberation, the leadership of Pathway Press, its board of directors and leadership of the Church of God have made the difficult decision to close Pathway Bookstore, effective immediately,” said Scot Carter, director of CoG’s Department of Communications.

Pathway Bookstore—which will continue as a convention store for the denomination—directed customers with gift cards and layaways to a Web site at www.pathwaybookstore.com, which CoG will continue to maintain, CoG officials said.

White Wing Christian Bookstore, located near Pathway Bookstore, has reported an increase in sales since the closing of Pathway. Store manager Cliff Anderson told Christian Retailing that White Wing planned to expand to accommodate new customers.

Meanwhile, The Garden Bookstore at Houston’s First Baptist Church in Houston—a leading member of the church bookstore movement—was due to close by the end of February as part of cost-cutting moves at the church.

The 2,000-square-foot store with a staff of four was founded 16 years ago by manager Geni Hulsey, president of the Church Bookstore Network since it was founded in 2006.

Steven Murray, director of communications at the historic Southern Baptist church, told Christian Retailing that the decision to close the store had not been an easy one as it had been “ministering to our church family” since 1993 under (Hulsey’s) “faithful leadership.”

But the store’s ability to remain financially viable had been impacted by the growth in online retailing, and the recent downturn in the economy had seen consumers looking for deeper discounts.

“All of this, coupled with giving to the church running behind budgeted needs, has led the church to take steps to prevent being overspent this fiscal year,” Murray said. Action steps had included eliminating several positions in the church, cutting the budget for the rest of the year by 20% and closing the bookstore.

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