America’s Spiritual Awakening Driving Religious Sales to $9.5 Billion by 2010

New York, April 7, 2006— With sales from 2002-2005 growing a whopping 28%, America’s fascination with the spiritual has taken religious products out of secluded mom and pop shops and into heavy mass market circulation, a move that will help drive sales to $9.5 billion by 2010, according to The Religious Products Market in the U.S., a new report from market research publisher Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, a leading provider of industry-specific market research reports.

Packaged Facts estimates that among the three major categories of religious products—books, inspirational gifts/merchandise, and audio/video/software—overall sales reached $7.5 billion in 2005, up an impressive 9% over 2004. Not surprisingly, books, riding on the success of blockbuster hits, such as The Purpose Driven Life and The Da Vinci Code, dominate the market, garnering 52% of 2005 sales.

While mainstream megaliths continue to rule the roost when it comes to publishing, manufacturing, and distribution—particularly of evangelical/mainstream spiritual product—one can certainly not leave out the fact that smaller niche enterprises exist to cater to the no-less profitable markets for Catholic, Jewish, Buddhist, Islamic, and New Age publications and products.

“The floodgates, so to speak, have truly opened up in the last few years as blockbuster books, Grammy-winning CDs, and films, such as The Passion of the Christ, have ignited an unprecedented national interest in and acceptance of religious fare,” said Don Montuori, the publisher of Packaged Facts. “The plethora of products readily available in a variety of retail venues has caught the eyes of consumers of all ages and denominations, making this a growth market, which should continue to expand well over the next five years.”

The Religious Products Market in the U.S. provides a comprehensive analysis of the religious goods phenomenon; examining new product trends; offering competitive profiles of industry leaders (and up and comers); and looking at consumer trends and behaviors that are driving sales. Priced at $3,000, this report can be purchased directly from Packaged Facts by clicking: http://www.packagedfacts.com/pub/1176021.html. It is also available at MarketResearch.com.

About Packaged Facts
Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, publishes research reports on a wide range of consumer industries, including consumer goods and retailing, foods and beverages, and demographics. For more information visit www.PackagedFacts.com, or contact Tom Ehart at 240-747-3014, or tehart@marketresearch.com.