The Public Works has a broader skill set than most businesses. Branding and advertising? Check. Multimedia? Check. Trade show booths? Check. Sustainable library shelving? Check. Biofuel fabrication technology? Check.
Co-pilot Mike Arzt has deftly flown the company with the like-titled Frank Phillips since 2006.
In 2010, the duo relocated from Evergreen to the Art District on Santa Fe's
Battery621 building, which they renovated from an abandoned lighting shop to an award-winning co-working space. Since opening, the building has been “booked solid” with tenants ranging from one-desk operations to Boulder outerwear maker
Spyder, says Arzt.
Now with 10 full-time freelancers, The Public Works added Airstream, Grand Marnier and Ferrari to its impressive client roster. The Public Works still does plenty of work for top winter-sports brands, where it earned a sterling reputation, and looks to make a big splash at the
2013 SIA Snow Show.
At the Snow Show, The Public Works will utilize an Airstream as a mobile studio to record interviews with a who's who of the snow-sports industry for “The Business of Fun,” a career outreach program focused on “keeping kids out of cubicles.”
And business is definitely fun at The Public Works. Artz spotlights upcoming Ferrari photo shoots in Aspen and Steamboat Springs.
“We call it brand stimulation,” says Arzt. “We're helping brands tell their stories, whether it's through trade show booths or multimedia.”
The Public Works is also in the midst of an installation at a Pueblo library with the
Supple Collection, the company's line of sustainable bookshelves, magazine racks and other library furniture.
After the success of Battery621, Arzt and Phillips may also invest in more Denver real estate.
“There are so many awesome spots that are just getting better and better,” Arzt says.
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