Bibles to Bodies: They’ve Got It Covered

FULLERTON â€”  When Gregg Gray began making Bible covers as gifts for family friends during the late 1960s, he never envisioned that the hobby would lead to a full-time job.

Even after Fullerton-based Gregg Manufacturing patented its first cover design, Gray fully expected that he’d return to his upholstering business as soon as the book cover fad ran its course.

“But it took off, and we’ve been in business for nearly 26 years,� said Gregg’s wife, Debbie, co-founder and executive vice president of the family-owned company that now distributes its covers for Bibles and other books to thousands of stores around the country.

“They became a staple item, not only at Christian bookstores, but at secular bookstores as well,� Debbie Gray said. “We’re now selling in airport gift shops and we’re starting to look at overseas sales in places like Japan and Europe.�

The company now produces hundreds of different covers--for paperbacks through to weightier tomes--with religious covers and purely secular designs. The small, privately held company manufactures and ships products at two small warehouse facilities in a Fullerton industrial park.

Some industry observers were surprised when the Grays opted to diversify their business with the addition of an upscale line of inspirational women’s wear.

And while there’s a world of difference between book covers and apparel, the couple maintains that there are enough similarities to help them bridge the gap.

For starters, Gregg Manufacturing is ordering bolts of fabric from mills that already supply them with material for their book covers. Fabric cutters in the company’s small manufacturing plant have long used sewing machines to craft covers.

And, unlike new apparel companies, Gregg Manufacturing “already has a foot in the door because we’ve been doing business with the Christian bookstores for 25 years,� Debbie Gray said. “We were surprised by how many people started making orders even before we’d shipped our catalog.�