Following the end of its partnership with Tyndale House Publishers last year, the U.K.-based company has launched Friends and Heroes LLC in Greenville, Texas, to distribute the 39-episode set, which released in 2007 and is now available in 10 languages.

Making the most of the crucial Christmas-shopping season involves more than just ordering key product in plenty of time, according to CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey.

Stores need to be working hard the rest of the year to ensure that they are at the top of consumers' mind when the holiday comes round, he said.

Consumers can access the service by visiting the association's store-locator Web site. CBA's Web site also offers a link to the service.

Though cheaper prices elsewhere have commonly been held to be a major issue for Christian retail stores, it seems that cost is not that big a deal after all.

Only one in 14 retailers "agreed strongly" that when consumers stopped shopping at their store, it was usually because of pricing, according to the latest Christian Retailing Vital Signs industry survey, which looked at how retailers view and care for shoppers.

The CBA stayConnect at the social media site was launched by Todd Whitaker, a second-generation Christian retailer whose father, Jim, was chairman of CBA until earlier last year.

Jennifer Willingham, previously vice president of publicity, has been promoted to associate publisher. Jonathan Merkh, vice president and publisher, said Willingham "has proven herself a creative and dedicated professional both at Howard and over the past 16 years of her publishing career."

Angie VanTassell has also been hired as director of publicity. Previously vice president of Alday Communications, VanTassell also served as director of marketing for W Publishing Group. Additionally, Libby Reed has been hired as publicity assistant. Ashley Earnhardt, previously marketing associate, has also been promoted to publishing manager.

In the editorial department, Holly Halverson joined Howard Books as senior editor June 7. Halverson was most recently employed by the Hachette Book Group. Additionally, Jessica Wong, previously administrative coordinator, has been promoted to associate editor.

"These promotions reflect the growth mode we're in at Howard Books," said Merkh.

Due to the Icelandic volcanic ash forcing the closure of London’s Heathrow Airport, members of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association’s (ECPA) Christian Collective,―comprised of 10 Christian publishers from the UnitedStates, Germany and the U.K.,―were unable to attend the 2010 London Book Fair (LBF), held April 19-21. ECPA was working with organizers and the exhibit insurance provider to recoup the financial investment of the publishers. LBF officials said attendance was down significantly due to the travel disruption.

CanZion-Integrity Distribution (CID)—an alliance between the CanZion Group and Integrity Music Latin—will cease joint operations in the U.S., but will continue doing business in Puerto Rico. Two of the world’s leading producers of Latin worship music, Integrity Music Latin and CanZion Group, formed CID last year in an effort to combine sales/marketing and distribution operations for the U.S. and Puerto Rico—while maintaining separate operations for all international markets.

Christian Trade Association International has released its 2010-2011 International Market Directory (IMD), listing more than 1,000 suppliers from 62 countries. IMD is a year-round resource for both international buyers and sellers as

well as a tool to make planning easier and more profitable for the International Christian Retail Show.

Edward England, considered a British publishing pioneer who published the best-selling works of Corrie ten Boom, Richard Wurmbrand and John and Elizabeth Sherrill, died May 16. He was 80. England—publisher of Hodder & Stoughton’s religious publishing for more than a decade until he left in 1980—was responsible for commissioning or acquiring a string of best-sellers, including ten Boom’s The Hiding Place and Chuck Colson’s Born Again. England also wrote at least 30 books, including The Mountain That Moved (Hodder & Stoughton).