Portland, ME – Next Day Art, an art licensing and product ideation company located in Portland, Maine, has secured product licensing agreements with some of the largest and most recognized manufacturers of calendars, journals, gifts, puzzles and more.  With over 500 images under licensing agreement with manufacturers in just over 12 months, the company is in a great position to grow in 2008 and beyond.

According to James Meserve, president of Next Day Art, “Industry leading companies like Hasbro, MeadWestvaco, C.R. Gibson, Demdaco and more have licensed artwork from us over the last six months.” 

In addition to the specific companies listed above, Next Day Art has negotiated licensing agreements with manufacturers of wall décor, mobile wallpaper, quilting and textile fabrics, greeting cards, collectibles, wallpaper, poster reproductions, serving trays, mugs, coasters and more.  Most of the products licensed through Next Day Art are scheduled to hit stores nationally and internationally in 2008 and 2009.

“We are very pleased, especially as a new company, with the reception we have garnered from the manufacturers and designers we work with”, commented Meserve.  “We operate under the slogan ‘Bringing Great Art to Life’ and hope to give artists another avenue to make money as well as the opportunity to share some of their beautiful works with a wider audience as they become interpreted onto various products.”   Continued Meserve, “It’s really fun and gratifying to see the products come to life and appear in stores.”

Companies that produce greeting cards, home accents, gifts, wall décor, home accents, textiles, collectibles, puzzles, calendars and more rely on Next Day Art to source and license art.   Next Day Art represents artists from Maine and the rest of the United States, as well as globally including Canada, Europe and Australia.

To find out more about Next Day Art, visit their website at www.nextdayart.com or call 207-761-4278.  For representation of licensing inquiries contact jim@nextdayart.com

PORTLAND, ME: Dr. David J. Stuchiner, Chairman of the Iris Network’s Board of Directors, announced Wednesday the appointment of James E. Phipps as the new President/CEO of The Iris Network.

Mr. Phipps comes to The Iris Network having served 18 years on the organization’s Board of Directors, most recently as its former Chairman. Prior to his arrival at the Iris Network, Mr. Phipps was an attorney and partner at the Portland-based law firm Preti, Flaherty, LLP. For over 20 years, Mr. Phipps has been representing nonprofit organizations in areas such as rehabilitation, health care, education, and transportation, with assistance in Medicare compliance and nonprofit tax issues.

Mr. Phipps is a graduate of Florida State University. He earned a joint MBA/Juris Doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. He is a member of the Maine State Bar Association. Mr. Phipps lives on Chebeague Island, ME with his wife and two daughters.

“The Search Committee was impressed by Mr. Phipps’ long history of dedication to the Iris Network and to the visually impaired and blind community of Maine,” said Nancy Hawes, Board Member and Chair of the Presidential Search Committee. “As a leading attorney in the state of Maine representing nonprofits, Mr. Phipps will help guide the organization toward accomplishing its mission to serve as a resource for people across Maine with vision loss.”

Mr. Phipps will begin his duties as President /CEO in March 2008.

The Iris Network serves as a state wide resource and catalyst for people who are visually impaired or blind so they can attain their determined level of independence and integration into the community. Headquartered in Portland, the Iris Network has outreach offices in Bangor, Brewer, Ellsworth, Houlton, Lewiston and Saco.

Visit www.theiris.org for more information.

Portland-The Center for Grieving Children’s 11th Annual Auction & Dinner Gala sponsored by Re/MAX By The Bay, Geneva Ventures and Spectrum Medical Group will be held Friday, February 1st at the Holiday Inn by the Bay. Doors open at 5:30 PM. A limited number of tickets are still available at $90 each. All proceeds raised at the benefit auction will be used to support the services provided by The Center – a place where children and families who are grieving the death or facing the serious illness of a family member or friend can turn to for support, community outreach, and education.

The Center is also sponsoring a raffle with the grand prize of a Trip for two to the 2009 Super Bowl in Tampa Florida. This once in a lifetime opportunity includes: two tickets to the game, airfare voucher, game transfers, 2 tickets to the NFL experience and 4 nights hotel accommodations. Only 350 tickets are being sold and are available for $100 each. Tickets are available on our website www.cgcmaine.org or by calling The Center at 775-5216.

The evening’s events begin with a Silent Auction and Cocktail Reception. The Silent Auction features over 100 items donated by local businesses and other supporters of The Center. This event is also a celebration of The Center’s 20th Anniversary and as part of this celebration we will hand out our first Bill Hemmen’s Founder Award.

Following the Silent Auction will be Dinner and the Live Auction with items that include a Kid’s Crooked House, a Condo in Miami for a week, and tickets to a Red Sox/Yankees Game.

Don’t miss the fun – call The Center at 775-5216, email us at cgc@cgcmaine.org, or visit our website www.cgcmaine.org for more information or to order your tickets today!

The Center for Grieving Children’s mission is to provide loving support to grieving children, teens, families, and the community through peer support, outreach, and education. We honor and encourage the safe expression of grief and loss. We provide a loving community to foster the discovery and development of each child’s own resiliency and emotional well-being.

Portland-MAINE PASSPORT SETS SAIL IN PORTLAND Portland, ME – The cruise ships are making Portland a favored destination and one local company is looking to make sure that downtown businesses are in the best position to make their cash registers ring. Beginning in 2008, Maine Passport, a division of Next Day Art, Inc. located in the Old Port, will be greeting passengers as they “land” in Portland by personally handing them a “Passport” good for special offers designed just for them. The small pocket-sized expedition books will include special offers by local merchants, a walking map, interesting facts about the area and function as a valuable resource guide that they can use to contact merchants once they return home. “The major difference in this type of marketing program is that it is “active” as opposed to much of the destination-based efforts”, states Jim Meserve, president of Maine Passport. “Destination marketing plays a big role in getting the passengers here and it is very valuable. The Maine Passport answers the question ‘what now’ by hand-delivering very specific offers good for the day of their visit only. Portland has so many unique shops, restaurants, museums and attractions – we need to make sure that we are putting our best foot forward. This will pay dividends not only now – but when they return home and share this information with friends and family”, explains Meserve. Ad space in the 2008 Portland edition of Maine Passport is now being sold for 2008 and will have a distribution of over 10,000 books targeting the 30 plus cruise ships that are scheduled to dock in Portland. You can reserve your ad by contacting jim@mainepassport.com or by phone at 207-761-4278. You can find out more about the program by visiting their website at www.MainePassport.com. Deadline for inclusion in the 2008 edition is January 30th. Maine Passport is a division of Next Day Art, Inc., located at 424 Fore Street, 2nd Floor, Portland, ME and is a member of the Portland Chamber of Commerce.