From sharing space with an auto repair shop and hosting a local high school prom to selling flowers and wigs, several Christian retailers nationwide have discovered that it is good for business to broaden their appeal with some unlikely combinations.

They say branching out from the offerings of traditional Christian bookstores has helped spur sales and boost foot traffic as well as alleviate the impact of the recession, big-box retailers and the Internet.

Christina Knox opened Christina's Christian Bookstore in Statesville, N.C., inside the auto repair shop of her husband, Terry, two years ago. Opened four years ago, Terry's Tire and Auto Service has approximately 3,500 square feet, while the bookstore occupies around 1,200 square feet.

"We decided to open the bookstore in the garage office because I love to read and it made the garage a more interesting place for me to be," Knox told Christian Retailing. "Also, I wanted to make our garage and bookstore somewhere that God could be glorified. Almost all of my customers come from Terry's garage."

Elsewhere, 15,000-square-foot Connxions Bookstore and Event Center in Urbandale, Iowa--a suburb of Des Moines--opened in October and has hosted wedding receptions, business meetings, classes, seminars and live music as well as a Christian high school's prom in April.

"The economy was not good, but the event center took off," Connxions Executive Director Twila Shreves told Christian Retailing. "Two months after opening, we had people drive by and book events there."

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

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