|
Jeff West, owner of Witness Gifts Marketing, died March 6 at his home in Akron, Ohio. He was 47.
Through his own company and previously through Magi Marketing, West, a CBA member for years, sold gifts into Christian retail stores. During his four years with Magi, he sold to smaller accounts in Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, said Kent Barnard, national sales manager for the company.
"He loved the Lord and he cared deeply about his customers and their well-being," Barnard said. "He was probably one of the hardest-working sales reps for the Magi team, very dedicated."
On the online guest book at the Akron Beacon Journal Web site, retailers Kay and Derron Castille of Agape Inspirational Books, Gifts and Flowers in Darlington, Pa., wrote of West's "love of Christ that went along with everything he sold and represented."
He is survived by his wife, Jeanette; parents Jerry West and Sara (Sally) Keller; stepfather Don Keller; and sister Kristy (George) Santiago. |
Seeking to duplicate the success of its football-themed titles, Tyndale House Publishers will release this summer the autobiography of New Orleans Saints quarterback and Super Bowl XLIV MVP Drew Brees.
A Christian bookstore owner's "outrage" over the DVD release of The Blind Side has sparked an industry debate about distribution practices.
On behalf of a coalition of member publishers, the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) recently asked the High Court in London to hold the owner of a U.K.-based Web site in contempt of court for his repeated refusal to comply with a court order that required him to stop posting copyrighted materials without permission.
Retailers who vote in Christian Retailing's 2010 Retailers Choice Awards are automatically entered to win products nominated in the competition--and there are just 10 days left to participate. Until March 24, retailers are invited to vote for what they think are the best products of the year among the 275-plus nominations in 32 categories by clicking 
Christian retailers are to be given ideas on how to use new technology to drive sales in a special online class, later this week.
A pastor who found himself in the national spotlight following a campus killing spree addresses the question of suffering in a book released around the third anniversary of the headline-making event.
Tonight by TobyMac (Forefront Records/EMI CMG Distribution) continued to hold the top spot of the SoundScan's Christian/Gospel music Christian retail chart for sales the week ending March 7, while Pistachio: The Little Boy That Woodn't, VeggieTales (Big Idea/Word Distribution) remained atop the Christian Videos list.
