More demand for escapist fiction, great consumer emphasis on value—though not necessarily price—and the need for heightened customer service. These are some of the key trends for the Christian products industry in 2010, according to a group of leading publishers, retailers and suppliers looking ahead at the coming year.

Representatives of 10 Christian Retailing award winners address the major challenges and issues they see, in a special forecast in the January 2010 issue of the magazine.

John Thompson, vice president of marketing for B&H Publishing Group, sees publishers concentrating "on fewer, better books," while also predicting continued high interest in self-help titles. Karen Watson, Associate Publisher for Fiction for Tyndale House Publishers, observes: "As we continue to recover from these difficult economic times, readers will be looking both for stories that can speak to struggles they're experiencing and for stories that can help them escape."

Marilyn Largent, senior director of trade sales for David C. Cook, sees a welcome end to "fluff.... I'm seeing some pretty 'meaty' books that push the reader to think through what true Christianity is about, challenging readers to get serious about their faith... and live like there really is an eternal life."

The contributors-also including representatives of DaySpring, Baker Publishing Group, Howard Books and Zondervan-are all from winners of prizes in the 2009  Retailers Choice Awards, and Christian Retailing and The Church Bookstore awards.

Read the complete article in the January 2010 issue of Christian Retailing.

* This article has been corrected since first posted.