Livraria Evangélica

Steve and I have been on the board of a non-profit local CLC Christian bookstore for many years. For most of that time it has been an advisory board which meets 1-2 times a year. Lately, however, I have been getting more involved in the nitty gritty daily affairs.

 

A young man managed the store for a long time and the great thing was that he was very honest. The downside was that he didn’t want to go out to churches, conferences and seminaries to promote the store. After the store moved, many people no longer knew where to find it. The regional director was very frustrated but felt she couldn’t find anyone as honest as him. We know a young lady who loves marketing, is very honest and loves God and suggested her. A year later she came on board.

There was no handover so she is figuring things out as she goes. One of the huge challenges is termites! The wooden shelves are full of them and they are in termite heaven in a bookstore. All that paper, all that wood, yum, yum (and no apologies from them)! Many of the books have been damaged and the shelves are a loss. Used metal shelves are being donated in England and will be put on a container to send here but that will take awhile. In the meantime we need to figure out what to do so that all the books are not eaten before we can sell them.

I have been helping a bit with book tables at community fairs and meetings. It is great to get out and meet people who have been looking for the store, or for a place to buy Christian literature. Please pray for success as it is the only evangelical bookstore ministry in the country (there is also a small branch in Beira).