Mainebiz

July 11, 2016

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V O L . X X I I N O. X V I J U LY 1 1 , 2 0 1 6 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S N E W S F RO M A RO U N D T H E S TAT E assist workers affected by the South Portland closure, according to a release from the department. e restaurants were among 12 acquired in a 2011 bankruptcy auction for $10.1 million, Nation's Restaurant News reported. With the Maine closures, Bugaboo Creek has just two remaining loca- tions, in Newark, Del., and Nashua, N.H., according to its website. WEX completes acquisition of Electronic Funds Source WEX Inc., a South Portland-based corporate payments company, announced July 1 that it has com- pleted its previously announced acquisition of Electronic Funds Source LLC, a fleet card provider, for $1.1 billion in cash plus 4 million shares of common stock. Based on the current expectations for closing and financing rates, WEX reported that it expects the transaction will add to its adjusted net income over the next 12 months. However, given the tim- ing of the close, WEX also reported that it does not expect the transac- tion will have a material impact on previously issued guidance for the remainder of 2016. "We are very excited to announce the completion of this acquisition, which we believe brings together two great companies with a portfolio of best-in-class offer- ings and a complementary footprint," Melissa Smith, WEX's president and CEO, said in a statement. "We look forward to commencing the inte- gration of EFS into WEX's global network, combining our strengths to improve the functionality and service we provide to over-the-road customers and mixed fleets in North America while driving further scale across the organization." e deal was announced in October. ImmuCell asks for tax break on expansion e Portland-based animal health products manufacturer ImmuCell Corp. is requesting a tax break from the city that will be used to help pay for a $3 million expansion at its Riverside-area campus, e Portland Press Herald reported. If the 12-year deal gets approved, it would provide $375,000 in local financing for the expansion, which is expected to bring an additional 14 jobs to the city. e expansion will cost $17.5 million, with $3 million of those funds being used for the 12,625-square-foot structure and the remaining $14.5 million being used for equipment and interior fur- nishings, the Press Herald reports. N O T E W O R T H Y S O U T H E R N Bangor Savings Bank opened a $5 million branch with business offices at 20 Marginal Way in Portland. Opus Consulting Group, which started at a small office in the Old Port, moved to larger quarters at 770 Congress St. in Portland. Eleanor "Ellie" Baker retired June 30 from Maine's second-largest account- ing firm, Baker Newman Noyes, where she was a founding partner. She had served as managing principal until Jan. 1, succeeded by Carl Chatto, who had led the firm's audit practice. Metro Breez, a bus service, was launched June 16, connecting Portland, Falmouth, Yarmouth and Freeport. Three buses, each with a capacity for 17 passengers, are dedi- cated to the service. Buses feature WiFi, USB ports, bike racks and extra cargo area. The service is supplied by Greater Portland Transit District. Waynflete, a private school in Portland, was awarded a $50,000 grant by the Edward E. Ford Foundation. The three-year grant, which requires a school match through charitable donations no later than July 2017, will support the school's New England Youth Identity Summit, institutional assessment and profes- sional development related to dialogue as well as the hiring of an associate director of student affairs to help lead these efforts. SIS Bank in Sanford completed reno- vations of its Wells branch located at 1149 Post Road. MaineHealth Care At Home in Saco received a one-year $10,000 grant from the York County Children's Aid Society Fund of the Maine Community Foundation to support its efforts to recruit and train volun- teers who can support children and families dealing with the challenges of serious illness. HistoryIT, a technology and ser- vices company in Portland, partnered with the Media and Culture Studies Expertise Centre at Utrecht University in the Netherlands to start a new series of hands-on digital heritage projects. In the first projects, students in the Master's program New Media & Digital Culture will help create access to digitized historical information in an Garbage to Garden wins $100K Greenlight Maine purse Garbage to Garden, a Portland-based curbside composting company, bested a field of over 80 prospective startups to win the $100,000 top prize at the inaugural Greenlight Maine competition in Portland. The company beat out two other finalists, Chimani and Revolution Research. The finalists were chosen earlier in June. "This was a team effort," said Garbage to Garden President Tyler Frank in a statement. "Our people, passion, purpose, game plan and product are our recipe for success. We are grateful for Greenlight Maine to provide us with a statewide forum to receive the initial know-how through mentoring and now financial capital towards achieving our dreams. We will look to re-invest in our business to further grow Garbage to Garden across Maine and other regions." Garbage to Garden is a subscription-based service. Customers pay $14 a month and are given a bucket with a lid in which they can collect kitchen scraps. That waste is collected once a week and thrown into a giant compost heap. Customers are then eligible to pick up finished compost, which can be used in gardens, window boxes, flower pots and so on. Greenlight Maine is the brainchild of Portland Media Group, a custom content and production company founded by Brian Corcoran, president of Shamrock Sports & Entertainment; Nat Thompson, former president of Maine Radio and Television Co. and former owner/producer at WCSH 6; and Con Fullam, a tele- vision producer and music composer. Portland Media Group partnered with Jess Knox, founder of Maine Startup & Create Week, to select companies. "All three companies did an incredible job pitching [at the June 24 competition] and I know it was a difficult choice for the judges," Knox wrote to Mainebiz in an email. "The outlook for all of these companies is incredibly promising." Before the final round, the Maine Department of Economic Development said that it will help the entrepreneur contest at least double its purse to $200,000 for its second season. It also hopes to expand the competition's reach in the state with the aim of also creating more jobs. "Season One was such a great success that we are going to double down on Season Two — two times the prize purse, two times the potential value to par- ticipating startups and two times the fun by engaging more mentors, sponsors and executives to raise the end result," Corcoran said in an email to Mainebiz. — M A I N E B I Z S T A F F P H O T O / P E T E R VA N A L L E N Tyler Frank, president of Garbage to Garden, won Greenlight Maine's top prize, $100,000. The company has a curbside composting service.

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