Baker Publishing Group Acquires Regal Books from Gospel Light
On June 30, 2014, Baker Publishing Group purchased the publishing rights for the Regal titles from Gospel Light.
“The board and leadership of Gospel Light made a strategic decision to concentrate on Gospel Light’s core mission,” said Stan Jantz, interim CEO of Gospel Light. “From the time Henrietta Mears founded Gospel Light in 1933, resourcing churches with curriculum and Vacation Bible School materials so that they can reach children and families with the gospel has been at the core. In order to concentrate on that mission, the board decided to find a compatible new home for Regal’s authors.”
Dwight Baker was keenly aware of the compatibility between Regal and Baker Publishing Group. “As a third generation family-owned company with 75 years of publishing experience, Baker Publishing Group has a long-standing fellowship with the Gospel Light/Regal Books community,” he said. “Our two respective publishing programs complement each other well. I observed with admiration as Regal introduced such authors as George Barna, John Perkins, Norm Wright, and Dutch Sheets to a wide readership. This is the legacy of Regal and a standard that we are compelled to maintain.”
“Regal was founded by Bill Greig Jr. in 1965, and the first book published was How to Be a Christian Without Being Religious by Fritz Ridenour,” Jantz added. “That the book is still in print and still selling, with the author living 30 minutes from our home office in Ventura, is a fitting testimony to the staying power of Regal’s authors and mission. The Greig family is pleased that the legacy and ministry of authors like Fritz and hundreds more published by Regal over the years will continue to grow within the Baker Publishing Group.”