Salem Stone of Winston-Salem, NC, is sponsoring the first annual Marble Institute of America (MIA) Advertising Awards Competition. Salem Stone is contributing $7,500 to help fund all aspects of the awards program, including a major announcement presentation.

Entries in the competition, which will honor the industry's best advertising efforts, will be judged in Cleveland on August 23, 2005. Winners will be announced at the MIA Annual Meeting held in conjunction with StonExpo in Las Vegas, which takes place from October 19 to 22.

Salem Stone sells a wide range of equipment and consumables for natural stone fabrication. “Though we are new to the stone industry, our company has a 70-year heritage,” said Steve Brown, advertising and marketing director for Salem Stone. Brown said Salem entered the stone business about three years ago after being a premier, long-time supplier of equipment and consumables for the architectural glass industry. Just as in the glass business, Salem Stone represents major Italian producers of equipment and consumables.

“We are pleased to be sponsoring the MIA Advertising Awards,” Brown said. “It's our way of showing that we want to be a contributor to the overall stone industry community. We are anxious to see the results of this innovative MIA-wide program.”

“As title sponsor, Salem Stone will have its name attached to all phases of the awards package, including a video presentation which will announce the winners in Las Vegas during StonExpo 2005,” said Gary Distelhorst, executive vice president of MIA. “On behalf of the industry, we thank Salem Stone for their generous support in helping to make this an effort worthy of the best advertising MIA members have to offer. Their sponsorship allows MIA to ramp up this new awards competition and put it on a fast track to becoming an important part of our overall awards programming.”