Cokesbury closes its stores as book buyers go online
Following a national decline in sales at retail bookstores, the United Methodist Publishing House will shut down all of its 57 Cokesbury stores, including 19 at seminaries, by April.
Cokesbury has served congregations, theological schools and church leaders for more than 200 years, but “a shift toward all things digital” and the convenience of online shopping has led to the closings of such chains as Borders and many independent stores, said Neil Alexander, president and publisher of the Methodist institution based in Nashville, Tennessee.