Bible Society Bookshops
Providing Scriptures to the People of Egypt

Summary
The Bible Society of Egypt (BSOE) bookshops are one of our most fantastic opportunities, and our most fantastic expense!  From a commercial point of view, all should be shut down.  From a spiritual point of view, these bookshops are the only way we can accomplish our mission of making God's Word available, understandable, and affordable to Egyptians all across the country.
The BSOE bookshops maximize opportunities for Bible distribution and fundraising.  The infrastructure and personnel for each bookshop are already in place but as the net income from sales and fundraising is not enough to cover the running expenses of the branch, subsidy is needed to close the gap and maintain branch operation. 

Introduction
"The Bible Society of Egypt exists to make the Scriptures available and accessible to all, at an affordable price, in a language people can understand, and in a way that can help each one comprehend the message and effectively apply it."
With the increasing marginalization of the Christian faith in Egypt and in the entire Arab world, there is a pressing need to provide the Scriptures in a format which helps to interpret the Christian faith in a positive and affirming way within the dominant Islamic context.  As the largest Arabic Bible publisher in the world, the vision of the Bible Society of Egypt is to impact the mindset and the heart of the Arab people with the Word of God, through dozens of innovative projects and strategically located bookshops.
In the past 3 years, the BSOE was able to freely distribute over 400,000 beautiful Children's Bibles to nominal Christian students. At least 80% of these children do not attend church and have no source of God's Word.  In a country where less than half the people can read, our Post-Literacy program is helping 24,000 new readers develop and retain their reading skills, through reading and applying the Scriptures in their lives. 
Additionally, dramatized cassettes and videos translate God's Word into the heart language of Egyptians. Because of the desperate economic situation, products must be subsidized in order to be affordable. Suitable Scripture products at extremely low prices make it possible for many poor and illiterate people to access God's Word in an understandable and attractive format. Other BSOE projects supply Scriptures for prisoners and their families, for the disabled, for refugees, and orphans.
The BSOE seeks out creative and non-traditional means of reaching people otherwise unaware of Scripture products, through participation in Bookfairs, exhibitions, and the placement of outlets in shopping malls, holiday resorts and other seasonal locations, along with free home delivery. Moreover, public marketing of the Bible through Highway Billboards, Press and TV ads is raising awareness and making the Bible a familiar sight in this land of Egypt.
The backbone of the Bible ministry in Egypt is the presence of our 11 Bible bookshops on the streets of Egypt, providing a comprehensive network and means to provide God's Word.   Bookshops are strategically located throughout Egypt, to reach the remote parts of the country, small cities and villages that are extremely underserved.  We now have 11 bookshops on the streets of Egypt, and many of these are the only Christian bookshop that is positioned outside of the church in that whole state. This presence extends far beyond the walls of the bookshop, as each branch manages a ministry team which is responsible for the various Scripture projects in the area, such as those mentioned above.

Problem Statement
These bookshops are not self-sustainable, because the purpose of BSOE bookshops is evangelistic, rather than commercial.  They could be, if distribution was drastically reduced, and prices adjusted to target the 5-10% who can afford to purchase.  However, subsidy is needed in order to target the 90% who cannot buy Scriptures unless they are very inexpensive.  This translates into an annual net loss.  On the average, the return on sales from all products is less than half of the actual cost of the Scriptures that are provided.
Furthermore, more than half of Egypt is illiterate.  And yet, all of our Audio and Visual products, which are essential to make God's Word understandable in the heart language, are licensed only to be sold through a Christian outlet.  Very few such outlets exist on the streets of Egypt.
Without these bookshops, we would have to simply make our Scriptures available in Christian bookshops inside churches and thus deprive the majority of people in Egypt from accessing God's Word. 

Project Plan
Since we cannot increase our selling prices enough to cover our real costs the only solution is to increase fundraising.  The purpose of our Adopt-a-Bookshop program is to secure the future and continuity of the Bible Work in Egypt.  Our goal is to develop long-term, on-going partnership with churches and individuals who would like to impact the Middle East by helping to provide the support needed to keep these "Mission outposts" open and providing the people of Egypt with God's Word.
This partnership will help to secure the continuity of this opportunity, making it possible to keep God's Word available in the marketplace, on the street, near to those who need it.  The BSOE will provide donors with information for adopted bookstore with pictures and details about the city and ministry in that area, the local team on staff there, etc.  We want donors to see this as their mission outpost in Egypt, and help them get to know these individuals and make a personal connection, sharing in their lives and service through regular updates and prayer requests.
We are seeking many groups/individuals to commit to being one of several partners needed for each bookshop.  Any amount therefore is acceptable, although we prefer the minimum commitment to be at least one tenth of the need for one bookshop (one tenth = $350/month).
We have a short presentation on our bookshop ministry available, and we are happy to help provide pictures and information that you can use to help raise funds for supporting this project. 

Objectives
The objective is to effectively serve our constituency with affordable and suitable Scripture products and projects, and to maximize opportunities for Bible distribution and fundraising.

Output and Impact
The presence of the BSOE bookshops will ensure continuity of service and the establishment of well known Bible distribution centers. We will be able to reach target audience with relevant and attractive Scriptures made available and affordable, bringing about increased Bible engagement (measured by growth of walk in customers to bookshops and growth of quantities distributed to churches and wholesalers).The impact is:

• More regular Bible reading and study.
• More in-depth understanding of the Bible and Biblical principles and values such as love, fellowship, honesty, faithfulness…etc.
• More people who are faithful will be able to teach others. (II Tim 2:2)

The BSOE bookshops will provide a place where seekers can make inquiries about the truth of God’s Word and find suitable Scripture resources (observed by the number of people who are willing to enter the bookshop, purchase Scriptures, and ask basic questions about Christ and Christian faith).  New people will obtain the Scriptures and will be introduced to the Bible for the first time.
The BSOE bookshops serve as bridgeheads for supporting churches and other ministries. Through having a local branch, people with disabilities, visually impaired people, prisoners, poor areas, orphanages can be identified and served well.
Furthermore, local fund-raising is increased by the presence of these bookshops, and 2007 showed a 27% increase in local fundraising.  We assume that the continued presence and ministry of the bookshops will result in a continued increase and growth of fundraising income, despite the present difficult economic situation.