Saturday, September 12, 2015 The Forum Section C

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2016 Porsche 911 Targa 4 GTS is surprisingly comfortable.

MORE INSIDE

Michael Vosburg / Forum Photo Editor

Brian Jorvig, from left, Al Winmill and Shawn Muehler hold drones used by Botlink on the roof of the Black Building in Fargo.

Fargo

Halberstadt’s on Broadway is growing.

The men’s clothing store at 102 Broadway

has removed a portion of a wall that separated it from the Broadway Shoe Co., and what had been the shoe store is now part of Halberstadt’s.

Men’s shoes will continue to be offered, and the shoe-shine stand that operated out of Broadway Shoe Co. will also continue, said Barry Gruchow, managing partner for Halberstadt’s, which also has a store in the West Acres mall.

The Halberstad’s store in the mall is located in the same wing as a Broadway Shoe Co. store, and the latter will continue to operate as

Broadway Shoe Co., Gruchow said.

He said the expansion of the downtown Halberstadt’s into the former shoe store space is expected to be completed soon.

Coffee shop/art gallery

eyes Moorhead spaceMoorhead Billiards, a large

dining and entertainment complex in downtown Moorhead, plans to lease out a portion of its space to accommodate a proposed coffee

shop and art gallery.Marc Oelslager, co-owner

of Moorhead Billiards, which includes a billiards center, bar and cafe, said the lease deal hasn’t been formalized yet, but he said the plan is to rent out an area of the complex that includes a silo structure that was once part of a microbrewery when the building housed Coach’s Sports Pub.

Much of Coach’s was demolished following a fire that damaged the structure in 2013. Oelslager and a business partner refurbished what remained, and Oelslager, who operated Billiards on Broadway in Fargo for 22 years, set up a billiards parlor in the former Coach’s space.

Halberstadt’s expands into shoe store space

DAVE

OLSONInside

Business

INSIDE BUSINESS: Page C11

By Angie Wieckawieck@forumcomm.com

Fargo

Rather than home to the Oil Patch, North Dakota will likely soon

be best known as home of the Drone Patch, say representatives of Absolute Marketing Group. In anticipation, the Fargo firm recently debuted Launchboxx, a division that will focus exclusively on drone advertising and marketing.

Brian Jorvig, a drone marketing specialist for Launchboxx, said Absolute is the first marketing firm to focus on the industry.

“We’re the first one in the world, as far as we know, that has a dedicated team of people for drone marketing,” he said.

Jorvig said there are several reasons North Dakota is poised to become a hub for the unmanned aircraft systems industry.

One is that agriculture is currently one of the biggest markets for drones. Another is that the state’s landscape is perfect for drone testing.

Also beneficial is that North Dakota’s government officials are supportive of the drone industry.

The state has invested more than $34 million to establish the Northern Plains Unmanned Aircraft Systems Test Site near Grand Forks, where companies can test their drone technology.

Jorvig said there are only five similar testing sites in the country.

Marke t potentialJorvig and MacDalton

Berns, a partner at Absolute Marketing Group, came up with the idea for Launchboxx together, but he has spearheaded the project.

Jorvig has always been interested in flight and became a licensed pilot himself a few years ago When he heard about a

BUSINESSPROFILEWhat: LaunchboxxWhere: 222 Broadway, Fargo.Contact: (701) 478-1111Online: www.golaunchboxx.com

Fargo’s Absolute Marketing debuts new division

dedicated to drone marketing

Dave Wallis / The Forum

MacDalton Berns shows the small camera on an 8-propeller drone that is being used by Launchboxx, a division of Absolute Marketing Group in Fargo, which is an advertising and marketing team that specializes in the use of Unmanned Aircraft Systems.

Launchboxxlifts off

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C12 Saturday, September 12, 2015 The ForumBUSINESS

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All winners will be unveiled in the Oct. 31 issue of The Forum of Fargo Moorhead. Final voting begins Sept. 21-26.

CAST YOUR VOTE FORVisit www.inforum.com to make your picks or fi ll out the entry form* below and mail to:

The Forum, Special Features: P.O. Box 2020, Fargo, ND 58108*Photocopies not accepted. If you don’t have an entry, please write “no entry” for a particular category.

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local Drone Focus meetup group, he began to attend meetings and was excited by what he heard.

“As I started learning more about drones, I knew we were on the verge of an industry that would absolutely explode. One that could change things all over the world, really,” he said. Jorvig believes the potential for drones is similar to that of the personal computer back in the late 1970s.

“This is one of those industries just like the personal computer industry back in the late ’70s and early ’80s where there is so much potential for it that everybody knows and they’re trying to get on board,” he said.

Jorvig quickly realized companies would need to be able to stand out from the pack, so he reached out to area drone expert Shawn Muehler for advice. Muehler is the COO and

co-founder of Botlink LLC, a tech company that specializes in extending drone battery life as well as in software that notifies pilots if they are flying close to another aircraft or into a restricted airspace.

Muehler agreed a marketing firm that specialized in drone technology was a good idea.

“He was wondering if there was any public relations representative

in the industry or any sort of marketing agencies within the drone industry. Quite frankly, there is not. We have to either do it ourselves or find an agency that doesn’t know the industry that well because it’s so new,” he said.

Muehler became a client and has spent the past few months helping the Launchboxx team learn all they can about drones, from how they fly to their

potential uses.Absolute has also

purchased its own drone. They have filed the necessary paperwork with the Federal Aviation Administration that will allow them to fly it commercially. Berns said the drone will allow them to enhance the photography and video services they provide to all of their clients.

Absolute Marketing Group will celebrate 10

years in business in April. Berns said over that time, the company has been a pioneer in areas such as social media, text marketing, website content management systems, responsive website design and mobile apps. He said drone marketing is another example of the company’s ability to anticipate and satisfy their clients’ needs.Readers can reach Forum reporter Angie

Wieck at (701) 241-5501

Michael Vosburg / Forum Photo Editor

Will DeHoogh, left, and Shawn Muehler remove the wings of the 15-foot drone used as a technology test bed for Botlink of Fargo.

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