The Fredonia Technology Incubator is welcoming a new business, Orbitist, LLC, to its facility in the central business district of Dunkirk. Orbitist is a startup company founded by Class of 2011 Fredonia graduate Nicholas Gunner which makes online mapping software for the tourism industry. the incubator currently supports nine business startups.

“We are thrilled to have Orbitist join our ranks here at the incubator,” said Chuck Cornell, Incubator director. “Nick and his company add to the mix of arts, science, and technology companies here at our facility.”

Orbitist maps can be embedded on websites, shared on social media, accessed on mobile devices via signage or brochures, and loaded onto interactive touch-screen displays. To complement its mapping software, Orbitist is a multimedia production studio that produces geographic documentary film, photography, self-guided audio tours, and writing. The company also installs and configures touchscreen displays to show Orbitist maps.

“I am excited by this opportunity to join the other entrepreneurs at the incubator,” said Gunner, president of Orbitist LLC. “This move will allow me to take full advantage of the support services they offer and grow my company.”

“Western New York is a treasure-trove of hidden gems, beautiful landscapes, culture and history. The problem is that it’s hard to communicate this intricate portfolio of attractions to visitors in a useful and truly meaningful way,” Gunner explained. “Think of a typical wine-tasting: You go into a winery … you try some wines, and then you leave. And that’s the extent of the engagement. There’s so much missed opportunity to expand on these experiences. Why do people love wine so much? It’s the story that matters.

“Now, imagine having a map on your phone that guides you around the grape fields, letting you explore and learn about the wine you’re tasting. Imagine if that map could pipe multimedia content to you … letting you listen to the vintner tell his or her story as you walk through grape fields … maybe you see video content of the wine-making process, see pictures of wildlife that live amongst the grapes or hear an aural history of the area. Visitors long for these deeper connections to places. Given the excuse, they’ll flock here and spend lots of time with us exploring … we just need to tell our story better. That’s where Orbitist comes in.”

Orbitist.com lets tourism agencies, museums, research institutions, and businesses tell and share their stories on beautiful digital maps. The company’s cloud-based application lets users map video, photography, text and even Twitter posts.

“The ability to map tweets was a feature we added on a whim, but it ended up being one of our favorite things about the application,” added Gunner. “It basically lets you map on-the-ground testimonials of people’s adventures. It’s free content and it’s authentic. It’s awesome to see on a map.”

You can learn more about Orbitist and see sample maps by visiting orbitist.com.