Christian retailers gathered with suppliers and distributors at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, June 28-July 1, where a significantly fewer number of attendees convened. Those who did, however, benefited from a full program of training, discussions of industry issues and exhibit hall appointments. Hosted by CBA under the theme "Expect," the event emphasized the need for hope and courage in the face of business and social challenges.

CBA said convention registration numbers suffered because of broader industry events and currency exchange rates for international attendees. Total attendance declined 25 percent from last year to 3,002. Exhibitor attendance was down the most because exhibitors brought fewer people to the show. International attendance declined 14 percent.

“There’s a transition in how the exhibitors utilize the International Christian Retail Show,” CBA President Curtis Riskey told Christian Retailing. “Many still are writing orders and meeting with customers and their buyers. Also we’re seeing that more of our exhibitors are interested in having business meetings and things like that, so they are very specific about how they’re going to do that, so I think what we’re seeing on the floor is really the transitioning of how the floor space is utilized and I expect that to continue. We’re busy trying to create that value proposition for those various ways of measuring value and being very specific about that.”

A later opening time for the exhibit floor allowed for time to address the big issues facing Christian retail. Among them was the challenge to religious liberty that could be faced by business owners whose beliefs conflict with contemporary cultural values. Attorneys representing Alliance Defending Freedom, American Center of Law and Justice and The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty prepared a special booklet for distribution to help Christian business people understand the new landscape and what to do about it.

Another focus for discussion was engagement—how stores can better position themselves and embrace technology to connect with the next generation of "digital natives."

Because of the new schedule, there were fewer conflicts between training and floor time.

“I really think that some of the changes that we’ve made have helped a lot as far as funneling all the traffic to the floor and having those specific hours, so you’ve got training and education outside the floor hours and then once you get on the floor, having dedicated hours has really helped a lot too,” Riskey said.

Attendees also gave $2,600 in a special offering that went to Orlando Children's Church, part of CBA's commitment to leaving a lasting impact in ICRS host cities. The gift brings the total given to international and local ministries at conventions since 1998 to $193,000. Additional donations were given on the exhibit floor, where the ministry had one of its buses parked.

 ICRS 2016 will have a revised format and new features while retaining its focus on providing a singular opportunity for the Christian products industry to convene for business, relationship building and addressing common concerns. The convention also is a forum to express the industry's common cause and mission.

The event will be held June 26-29, 2016 at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati under the theme "Unite."

"It's never been more vital that we come together as an industry," Riskey said. "We've been reminded again this week how important ICRS is to everyone in our industry, and we are working hard to shape the show even better to continue the vital conversations we have been having and to help everyone succeed in their part of the mission of sharing God's love with a world in need."

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