wfn.org | Publishing House forges ahead with major new products

[NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG]

Sept. 28, 2000  News media contact: Tim Tanton·(615)742-5470·Nashville,
Tenn.  10-71B{437}

NOTE: This report is accompanied by a sidebar, UMNS story #438.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS) - The newest chapter in the story of the United
Methodist Publishing House promises to be packed with action (new stores
opening!), thrills (new products for ministry!) and human interest (new ways
of interacting with customers!).

The agency is starting a new four-year period of work with an obvious sense
of excitement among top staff members, who shared big-picture vision and
product specifics with their board of directors during a Sept. 25-27 meeting
at the Publishing House's headquarters. The meeting was held to organize the
board and orient new members for the work ahead in the 2001-2004
quadrennium.  

Major new products that are out or will soon be available include the
Disciple 4 study program, The Faith We Sing hymnal supplement, the
Korean-English Hymnal, a newly updated Book of Discipline and a host of
other items for people inside and outside the church. The Publishing House
plans to reach more people and address more needs through new online
offerings, and it is building its first new brick-and-mortar stores since
the mid-1990s.

I think the one of the things has been the infusion of creativity and
exciemtent on the part of hte statff as theyve shared in ways of both
responding to expressed needs in congregations and alos dreaming about hte
kinds of neesd that we discover and come to fruitioin in the future nad how
to antiipcate those in teh developmenbt of rpoducts. the focus on
congregations and the life and ministry of congrs... givsde a very clera
sense of the arean were trying to serve so we can concentrate our attenion
and human and other resources on ...as a key arean for doing minsitry.

The exciemtnt hat comes from the success of disciple 3, christian believe,
positive reception that nib has, a sense that we can be a part of a renewing
and exciting time in the life of hte umc in hwich people ar e willing and
eager to excperiemtn and bring new ofrms to bear that would be infvivint tot
young adults and young persona dn amke the church a very vital place to be
and to engage the world in.

At the same time, the Publishing House is making a concerted effort to
listen more closely to its customers and understand their needs. For
example, each business unit is developing a relationship with a congregation
somewhere in the United States. Employees from the unit will visit the
church and get to know its people and their needs. going ot pay more
tqatnion to whats going on in congregations instead of organizations. 2nd
ewer wanting ot look deep int hte life of congrgns to undertand neds are
today and emergin over the next few years.

"We're an organization that is striving every day to pay attention to
congregations," said Neil Alexander, president and publisher.

The priority on local congregations was emphasized repeatedly throughout the
board meeting.

"The focus is not on our organization," Alexander said. "The focus is on the
delivery of resources that (support) and cultivate the Christian community
all across the world."

Today's churches are making choices from a variety of resources and putting
them together in new combinations, and the agency must respond, he said. "We
do not have a captive market. Maybe once we did."

Factors at play in the agency's work include an increased sensitivity and
commitment to addressing cultural differences among consumers, and
understanding changes and trends in how people worship, do Sunday school and
so on.

The Publishing House is responding to the diverse needs of congregations by
offering more choices in its resources, said Harriett Olson, senior vice
president of publishing and book editor for the denomination.

The Publishing House is emphasizing research, innovation and
experimentation. Alexander described how staff members are being encouraged
to come up with "big ideas." 

"We're open to experimenting with new forms of delivering products," he
said.

The agency is already delivering products online, and it plans on doing
more. Last year, the agency launched the online Cokesbury church music
service, providing one supplier for a congregation's music needs, plus help
and advice. It also just launched Cokesburytextsonline.com for seminary
students and teachers. In the offing is a teaching and learning Web site
that would provide help for teachers and learners, including 11th-hour help
for Sunday school teachers. Research and testing are still being done for
that idea.

Other new products include BibleQuest, a project being done with other
Protestant denominations; Faith Files, a project with the independent
Bristol House; BibleZone, a "Sunday school in a box" product for kids; the
Whole People of God, a lectionary-based curriculum; Exploring Faith, a
biblical text study; PowerXpress, a curriculum for churches that are using a
new model of rotating workshops for children's Bible study; 20/30, a study
for young adults; Steward, a 12-session Bible study that explores
stewardship; Christian Believer, a 30-week study course; and the "I Preach"
and "I Teach" resources available to online subscribers. An additional
volume of the New Interpreter's Bible is also coming out.

In addition, leader training for the Disciple 4 study will begin next
summer, and the resources for that program will be available the following
fall, said staff executive Winifred G. Grizzle.

The Faith We Sing hymnal supplement will be available in December, said
staff executive Bill Gnegy. It will have 284 songs that aren't in the United
Methodist Hymnal and will be offered in nine different editions (the pew
edition will retail for $9). The hymnal supplement is expected to draw $3.7
million in sales for this fiscal year, he said.

The Korean-English Hymnal will be typeset in April and ready for delivery to
customers in November 2001, according to staff member Dal Joon Won.

Along with new products, the Publishing House is broadening the reach of its
Cokesbury retail and distribution operation. While it is planning on
building new stores, it is serving customers online too, in a "bricks and
clicks" approach that other retailers are also taking, said Ed Kowalski,
senior vice president of marketing and sales. Through store staffs, outside
sales representatives, telesales workers, catalogs and the Web, the
Publishing House wants to make shopping at Cokesbury convenient and
"seamless to customers," he said.

Across the country, Cokesbury action teams, or CAT teams, are working
directly with congregations Kowalski said. Last year, they held 149 training
workshops related to curriculum. 

Plans call for building two more Cokesbury stores - the first new stores in
more than three years. 
In 1997, the agency decided to hold off on building new stores, since the
existing shops hadn't been performing well financially, and many needed
remodeling or relocating, said Don Sherrod, vice president of sales. Since
then, the agency has been upgrading and reworking its shops.

"We have totally remodeled at least half of the stores," Sherrod said. The
agency has 45 full-line stores and 25 seminary stores.

The Publishing House plans on opening an Atlanta store in January, and it
has a short list of cities for another shop that would open in February.

The agency also has plans for building stores in churches. The first such
store will open in First Presbyterian Church in Atlanta in November.
Presbyterian churches are Cokesbury's second-biggest group of customers,
Sherrod said.

The board approved a budget with projected sales of $119.7 million for the
2001 business year. That would represent a 6.7 percent increase from the
$112.15 earned in fiscal year 2000, which would make it the largest sales
increase since 1990, said the Rev. Joe Kilpatrick, who led the board's
budget subcommittee.

During the just-ended quadrennium, the Publishing House had positive net
operating revenue - the bottom line figure - each of the four years, said
Chief Financial Officer Larry Wallace. Net operating revenue for 2000 was
$1.9 million, up from $1.8 million the year before.

Don Tanselle, a former board member who played a key role in developing
financial policy during his 12 years at the Publishing House, said the
agency hasn't always been blessed with such good numbers.

"Times at the Publishing House have not always been bright," Tanselle told
the board. 

He noted how "fired up" Alexander was when describing the new opportunities
before the board. "Now," Tanselle said, "for the first time, the staff can
take advantage of those opportunities."
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