Pacific Press is closing their ABC's

[Stan]

I personally support this, they should be managed by the local conferences where they belong

THOUGHTS?

Quote:

Pacific Press Cancels ABC Contracts

Conferences will resume ownership; online options available. (Posted October 9, 2013)

BY MARK A. KELLNER, news editor

A total of 25 Adventist Book Center retail stores operated by the Pacific Press Publishing Association (PPPA) of Nampa, Idaho, will transition to local Seventh-day Adventist Church conference administration by the end of the year, officials of the publishing house announced following a September 26, 2013, board meeting.

The board “voted to request termination of the management agreements” for the stores, which it has managed “over the course of nearly 15 years,” a statement from the organization said. The outlets, PPPA said, served “nearly half of the North American Division membership.” A plan to terminate management agreements for the stores should be in place by December 31, 2013, the statement indicated.

“The board recognized that the current business model for these management agreements has experienced challenges due to changing trends in technology and the way people access information,” the PPPA announcement said.

The publishing house said it would not leave any local conferences or members without easy access to church materials.

“We are committed to making all quarterlies, magazines, books, and music easier than ever to order,” says Dale Galusha, PPPA president. “For most products, the local church won’t even notice a change in how they are ordered or delivered.” These materials are available online at www.AdventistBookCenter.com.

Pacific Press is a Seventh-day Adventist publisher based in Nampa, Idaho, that publishes books and magazines for all ages. The company, which has been in operation since 1874, has been based in Nampa, Idaho, since 1984.

[Green Cochoa]

I do not support the closure of our ABC's. I think, if anything, we should have more of them. At least tenfold more.

I may not be able to speak to where you live, but in my home area of the US, we have only two ABC's in the entire conference, and they are nearly four hours' drive apart from each other. Many people don't have time during their working week to visit one during business hours. This is most pityingly true for the hispanics, who cannot afford to drive so far to an ABC in the first place, and who, having never stepped foot in one, have no idea what they're missing.

Of course, if the ABC's are doing a poor job of leading people to what they have to offer, they will eventually be forced to close. Also, if what they are offering leaves people with empty, hungering souls, who will continue to support them?

I wish every church had books on display. Many members don't even know some of the books are in existence. They may not know where to go to get them, or don't have the ability to travel so far to find them.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

[Stan]

I agree, we need more and more, I do beleive this can be done best if they are own and managed by a the local conferences.