A message from Geni Hulsey, president of the Church Bookstore Network:

Since 1993, I have packed my bags and headed off for the CBA summer event that brings together vendors and store managers, frontliners, internationals, authors and artists and others affiliated with Christian retail.

Though I am always excited to see friends—vendors, store managers and workers—and to look for new products and talk with authors and artists, my anticipation was different as I made my plans to attend this year's International Christian Retail Show (ICRS).

The differences this year were that the leadership of CBA had changed, the format of the event was a bit different, and a lot of the familiar processes had been changed. I knew, too, that this show was operating on a far tighter budget than before.

Having been a part of planning The Gathering-a similar effort-I knew that it would be a challenge to bring the quality that we have seen in the past with fewer resources, both money and manpower.

But, you know what, they did it! All of the elements of a good retail show were there at last month's ICRS in St. Louis, and none of the extras that might have been there before were missed.

On the opening Sunday evening, we began with a time of worship, praise and thanksgiving. The music was diverse and well received. The entire program was full of challenge and encouragement. In a moment that was both tender and graceful, the association presented Bill Anderson, the group's immediate past-president, with a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award.

The evening set the tone for three more days that were upbeat, well-planned and had a constant air of, "What can we do to make this a better experience for you?"

I liked the venue in St. Louis a lot. Obviously, there were fewer in attendance and fewer vendors than in the early years, but because this was a smaller convention hall, it felt busy and active all three days.

The vendors seemed excited about the rebuilding process. It is no secret to anyone that they have fewer stores to work with and that those stores, in turn, have fewer resources. But as I talked with vendor after vendor, I heard them not whining, but asking for help in finding "win-win" answers, offering solutions and encouragement to stores that are committed to "hanging in there."

The store representatives seemed genuinely pleased with what they were finding in the way of new products from familiar vendors and totally new vendors.

In addition to seeing a lot of people who have become dear friends through the years, I also had managers of new church stores introduce themselves to me. Each vendor seemed sensitive to the special needs of church bookstores. There were classes that spoke directly to the operation of a church store as well as workshops that were suitable for anyone managing a store.

The overriding theme of the event seemed to be to seek solutions to the quickly changing face of Christian retail. Vendors were listening to retailers, and retailers were seeking solutions from vendors. The leadership team of CBA seemed to be glad to be the catalyst that brought the two together.

CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey, Chairman-elect George Thomsen and the rest of the CBA team were constantly present on the floor, listening, sharing and being a part of all that was going on. I believe God has put each of these men in his particular role for such a time as this. The Church Bookstore Network is excited to be a part of whatever God has in store for Christian retail in the coming months and years.

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