JEFFERSON CITY, MO. — From a nondescript factory on the outskirts of Missouri's capital city, trucks carry the magical world of Harry Potter to millions of Americans.
Jefferson City is home to the distribution center for Scholastic Inc., the American publisher and distributor of the Harry Potter series since 1997. More than 55 million copies of the series are currently in print nationwide.
While the company has headquarters in New York, Scholastic's Missouri facilities are responsible for packaging, marketing and shipping the Potter books and hundreds of other titles, including the Goosebumps series and Clifford The Big Red Dog.
More than 1.2 million books of all kinds are shipped each day from Jefferson City, where Scholastic employs 3,000 people.
Demand for the Potter books has soared in recent weeks since the release of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone," the movie based on the first book in the series.
Company officials say demand for the books has doubled or tripled in some parts of the country since the movie's release, which has earned about $250 million so far at the box office.
The response has Scholastic employees working overtime. But with all four books atop children's best-sellers lists and sales growing, workers aren't complaining.
Rita Bax, an order clerk, said she hasn't found the time to read any of the books but enjoys her job and the success of the series.
"The books are heavy and hard to work with, but it's worth it," Bax says. "I've got money in Scholastic stock, so I hope the books do well."
Written by J.K. Rowling, the Potter books follow the exploits of a young English boy who discovers he has inherited magical powers from his parents, a witch and wizard killed by a powerful enemy. He's invited to become a student at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
While Potter is distributed from Jefferson City nationwide, Scholastic is international.
Founded in 1920 as Scholastic Publishing Company in Pittsburgh, Pa., the $2 billion company bills itself as the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books with operations in 14 countries.
Stephen Tait, vice president for global operations, said although there have been successful children's series in the past, the Potter series is different.
"I think what's different about Harry is that it has been accepted as very high quality children's literature," Tait said. "I think it's going to be in the realm of Huck Finn and Tom Sawyer. We'll be shipping these things out for 20, 25, even 50 years because it will be part of classic children's literature."
Tait said Scholastic discovered the first Potter book at a book fair in Frankfurt, Germany. While Rowling's yarn was growing in popularity in her native England, the company was taking a risk.
"You don't know how things are going to translate. Sometimes they translate very well; sometimes they just fall flat," Tait said.
But he smiles when he acknowledges the success the company has had, though he declined to discuss how much money the series has brought to Scholastic.
"This one took off, and every title seemed to get stronger and stronger," Tait said.
Faye Edwards, vice president of operations, walks proudly through the noisy warehouse where pallets of Potter books await shipment from the 1.4 million-square-foot Jefferson City facility.
While she's quick to provide technical information about packaging and shipping Potter books, she would rather discuss her love of the literature.
"I think it is an inspiring story and kids love it, and I think it's a great way to get kids hooked on reading," Edwards said.
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