 Christian retailers recognize the potential of the growing inspirational movie market--but may need to pay close attention to the titles they carry.
While a majority of store respondents in Christian Retailing's latest Vital Signs survey said that they believed shoppers would buy "B" quality films as long as there were strong Christian elements, far fewer consumers said they would be interested in lower-caliber films just because of their content.
Additionally, some retailers said they feared that the category may soon attract general market interest, as happened with Christian music and best-selling books.
The Vital Signs survey follows a major spotlight for DVDs at this year's International Christian Retail Show, promoted as a strong growth category.
Three-in-four retailers said that they saw DVDs as a way of setting their stores apart, while an even greater number (81%) believed that customers will "go out of their way" to purchase "wholesome entertainment" they can't find elsewhere.
Further growth will come in the feature-film segment of the category, according to 23% of retailers, while 40% predicted a decline in consumer demand for music and concert DVDs, as well as a drop in the sales of teaching/preaching programs.
Feature films and children's programming make up the majority of titles carried in most stores. A typical commercially run store carries four feature film titles for every three children's DVDs, while the average church store is heavier in children's titles.
Read the complete report in the September issue of Christian Retailing .
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