With the economy continuing in a tailspin, a growing number of Christian retailers are stepping up their efforts on the Internet to generate sales.

Embracing the cyberspace commerce that has been partly blamed for the demise of many mom-and-pop bookstores, some brick-and-mortar stores have converted to an online presence in order to stay in business.

Ben Kish--who opened The Master's Loft in Winston-Salem, N.C., in November 1996--"moved the store" to the Web beginning in February. Kish told Christian Retailing that the 10,000-square-foot store and a warehouse would concentrate on sales of church supplies and discipleship materials. The new enterprise now has six employees, down from 25 full- and part-time workers.

Kish said that while online sales grew November-January, his in-store revenues were down from the same period in 2007 and 2008. "Many of our customers are now using the Internet as a primary source for our products."

CBA, which estimates that there are around 40 serious Internet-only Christian retail stores at this point, offers a workshop on the topic during the International Christian Retail Show in Denver in July.

"How to Supercharge Your Web Site" will be presented by Bill Goodyear, president of DeeperCalling Media--which handles Internet retail sales for approximately 800 retailers, most of them Christian stores. DeeperCalling's clients' online sales grew 6% during last year's fourth quarter compared to the same period in 2007.

Read the full report in the June 6 issue of Christian Retailing.

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