As Christian suppliers and retailers face a slump in consumer spending, they are looking to children’s products as a bright spot on a gloomy horizon.

A strong line of new releases and innovative marketing efforts offer hope for the spring and summer seasons, while stores have been urged to ensure that they cater to the tastes of increasingly media-savvy young visitors.

While sales in other categories faltered as 2008 ended, children’s books appeared to have kept moving—suggesting that families are still eager for inspirational products that promise hope and reinforce values in strenuous times.

Sales data from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) for the first three quarters of last year revealed that shoppers were working hard to save, but still buying for their children.

Purchasers of children’s books spent slightly less per book, but spent a bit more in total during each shopping visit, said Michael Covington, ECPA’s information and education director. “This would lead us to believe that consumers could be looking for lower price points, but buying more when they find those books,” he said, noting that the average retail price of kids’ books didn’t change during that period.

With prices in mind, publishers have devised promotions for spring and summer to wake up families to new as well as tried-and-true children’s books, movies and music. Homing in on best-selling brands and favorite authors, product lines are widening and diversifying, with VeggieTales, “Hermie & Friends” and “Gigi, God’s Little Princess” among the major players this year.

Read the full report in the Feb. 9 issue of Christian Retailing.