News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
One of Sisters’ largest and most widely-known businesses is being sold.
Don Jacobson, president and publisher of the Christian publishing house Multnomah Publishers Inc., formally announced on July 10 that he has executed a letter of intent to sell the company he and his wife Brenda founded in 1987.
The buyer of the company remains undisclosed. In a written statement, Jacobson said he will reveal the identity of the buyer upon completion of the sale which is expected to take place on or before July 31.
Jacobson told The Nugget that the company will be moved. Multnomah Publishers currently staffs 65 “full-time equivalent” positions, according to Jacobson, and he said “the new company will offer between 12 and 15 jobs to current Multnomah employees.”
Jacobson cited “lack of profitability” as the reason behind the sale. He said he has been seeking to sell the company for “not quite two months.”
In his statement, Jacobson said, “Brenda and I have been contemplating this possibility for some time and feel the sale of our company is in the best interest of Multnomah’s enduring mission.
“We have gone through an extensive process to identify another publisher that shares our vision for Multnomah,” he said. “We are confident we have found a publisher with the resources to accomplish this mission. The leaders of this company are well known within Christian publishing and have a fine list of authors that we believe are quite compatible with Multnomah authors.”
Jacobson brought the company from Phoenix, Arizona, to Sisters in 1989 as Questar. The company changed its name to Multnomah Publishers in 1997.
The company has produced approximately 100 new releases per year. Multnomah Publishers scored a major hit with the 2000 bestseller “The Prayer of Jabez” by Bruce Wilkinson.
In subsequent years, a soft economy and an increasingly tough publishing industry climate took a toll on the company. In January 2003, the company halted plans to build a publishing campus on land along Camp Polk Road. The land was subsequently sold and is now being developed as Sun Ranch Business Park.
In January 2004, Multnomah eliminated 15 positions in a restructuring of the company.
Despite economic difficulties, Multnomah has continued to produce inspirational books in categories ranging from fiction to self-help. One highlight was the 2003 publication of Kim Meeder’s “Hope Rising,” which depicted the life changing equine therapy activities on her Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch.
The book gained nationwide attention and helped earn Meeder recognition with a 2004 Jefferson Award for Service to America.
Jacobson said the post-sale plans of he and Brenda are “still in process,” but he said “we plan to stay in the area.”
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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