Lisa's away and Dexter's here

The big day is almost here for Lisa and she has begun her maternity leave. It's a huge change for everyone as we have a new studio manager stepping up to the plate.

Dexter Fry is a already well-known name in the book industry with a career that spans over 20 years. His work with HarperCollins, Penguin, Random House, New Holland, Scholastic and Exisle has given him just the experience we need to settle down our (no longer quite so new) Birkenhead studio. Dexter was also a judge for the Young Book Designer of the Year Awards in 2010 and 2011.

Here's a link to Dexter's personal website so you can see some of his work (although the piece on the last page is no longer relevant as he's now fully booked).

Some of you will know Dexters' name from the TRANZ image library where he has been a director in this family business for six years. The business is still going strong and now allows Dexter to return to what he enjoys doing most: book design.

Anne Luo has also joined our team in a permanent senior design position. Anne has been contracting for us for a while now and had become a valued member of the team even before she signed her contract.

Anne's previous experience at Weldon Owen and Macmillan involved book design and multimedia work. It's an area that has become a real passion for her and one that makes her the right person for this position at just the right time.

* A wee postscript here Lisa's had her wee boy on Tuesday. Both are doing well and he's just gorgeous.