The West Long Branch, New Jersey, location of Jesus Book and Gift Store has been temporarily condemned after a strip mall fire Oct. 31. Owner Joe Catalano said the store will reopen in two to three months after it sustained severe soot and smoke damage.

For now, staff from the closed store will work at the location in Green Brook, New Jersey. The undamaged West Long Branch merchandise also has been transferred to the main store.

Balmoral Funds, a Los Angeles-based private equity fund, announced today it has acquired Enesco LLC, a global leader in gift, plush toy and home-and-garden décor industries.

Enesco designs, develops and distributes products to specialty card and gift retailers, home décor boutiques, national retail chains and direct-to-consumer retailers. Christian retailers are familiar with many Enesco products, including Precious Moments figurines and Gregg Gift Bible covers.

Gift company Mary Square recently launched its Five & Two program, a philanthropic initiative that provides resources to people in need through the company's new corporate partnership with World Help.

Five & Two is named after Jesus’s parable of multiplying five loaves of bread and two fish to feed thousands. Similarly, Mary Square’s goal is to invest in people, and allow that investment to multiply.

Spy House Productions and Gundersen Entertainment’s "Owlegories" animated DVD series debuted to strong sales. The first volume, The Sun, the Seed and the Water, released Oct. 20 and sold out on amazon.com. It also charted on both SoundScan Children's Videos and Walmart's best-seller lists.

Thomas Boto, co-creator, co-director, executive producer and voice actor for "Owlegories," talked with Baptist Press about the launch of the series.

“There are times when parents are going to need kids to be entertained, so this is a great, safe way for children to watch for a short time and still be fed by God's Word," Boto said.

MercyMe will appear in the 89th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, live from New York City on NBC. The parade will air from 9 a.m. to noon on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26. MercyMe will be joined by other notable acts, including Mariah Carey, Cirque du Soleil and Pat Benatar.

Prior to the parade, MercyMe will perform at Atlanta’s Annual Great Tree Lighting at Macy's Buckhead Lenox store before a crowd of nearly 45,000. The event will be broadcast live on WSB Atlanta, an ABC affiliate, with subsequent replays during Thanksgiving weekend.

The Berenstain Bears Living Lights brand from Zonderkidz recently passed a sales milestone—5 million units sold since its 2008 launch. Living Lights—a faith-based edition of Berenstain Bears—is written and illustrated by Mike Berenstain, son of original creators Stan and Jan Berenstain.

The Berenstain Bears Living Lights offers a wide variety of books and storybook Bibles, including a cookbook and full-text NIrV (New International Reader's Version) Bible for emerging readers.

Consumers celebrating Christmas, Hanukkah and/or Kwanzaa will spend an average of $805.65 on food items, decorations, gifts and more this holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF) Holiday Consumer Spending Survey. This marks the highest amount in the survey’s 14-year history and is in line with last year’s spending, $802.45.

Spending on gifts for family members this year is expected to total $462.95, up from $458.75 last year and also a survey high.

Matthew Shay, NRF president and CEO, interpreted the study’s findings.

“Despite the challenges that still exist in our economy, it looks as if consumers are eager to celebrate the holidays with friends and family this year,” Shay said. “We expect consumers will tackle their holiday shopping lists with a healthy dose of optimism, tempered by a hint of caution as they look for ways to find the perfect, practical gift.”