The Parable Store in Arroyo Grande is Under New Ownership

Contact: Alec Bleher
Tel. (805) 543-2644
alec.bleher@parable.com

(January 23, 2017) As of January 1, The Parable store in Arroyo Grande, CA is under the ownership of experienced Christian bookstore owners Dave and Heather Wilke. The pair purchased the 2,600 square-foot store from longtime owners Steve and Laurie Potratz, who have operated it since 1981.

“It’s been a tremendous privilege for Laurie and me to serve the people and churches of the Central Coast for the past 36 years. We have built lifetime relationships that have richly blessed us and, most importantly, resourced Christians with products that helped them grow in their relationship with Jesus Christ and with others. We are so thankful for this community and the support they have given us. The Wilkes share our passion and vision for serving our community and I can’t think of anyone better to run the store and carry on its legacy,” said Steve.

The Wilkes have 40 years of experience in the Christian bookstore industry. They owned and operated seven Christian bookstores in the Los Angeles area. Dave Wilke has also worked in Christian publishing with roles at Gospel Light and David C. Cook. Heather has already been serving as The Parable’s general manager for the past year and they are both eagerly reentering retail store ownership.

“We are most excited about being a part of God’s plan to have Bibles that bring truth and books that bring hope and comfort and gifts that glorify God to those living on the Central Coast,” Heather said.

The sale is also an opportunity for Steve to transition into focusing more energy on his other business, The Parable Group. This multi-service marketing agency serves a variety of Christian organizations including Christian publishers, retailers, churches, non-profits, film studios and more. The Parable will remain one of his clients along with hundreds of other retail stores across the country.

This is the store’s 48th year in operation. It opened around 1969 as KT’s Bible Bookstore on Chorro St. until Jan Ulman bought it in 1973 and renamed it Jan’s Bible Bookstore. It became The Parable in 1981 when Steve and Laurie purchased it and named it The Parable. Since then, the store has moved from downtown San Luis Obispo to South Higuera. Today, The Parable is located at 921 Rancho Parkway in the Five Cities Center near Trader Joe’s.

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The Parable Group is a privately owned multi-service Christian marketing agency based in San Luis Obispo, CA. Since 1985, we’ve served over 1,000 Christian brands; including retailers, publishers, churches, non-profits, film studios and more. Today, we pair decades of Christian consumer data with proven business practices, cutting-edge digital technologies, and thoughtful design to drive measurable results for those we serve. As CBA’s exclusive data warehouse partner, we also safeguard Cross:Scan data to help unite and improve the Christian products industry.

For more information, contact sally.ross@parable.com or visit www.parablegroup.com.