Chad Ramos, a 27-year-old Las Vegas native, decided to become an entrepreneur when he saw a need that wasn't being filled.

His company, Deecus.com, is a Web Site designed to help LDS singles find singles wards in their area.

The company currently has seven employees and has been in the works for 12 months. A few days ago, Ramos and his partner moved into the Provo Labs Building on 900 East.

Ramos said working at this new location has been good for the company because of the workshops and connections made there.

"Provo Labs Academy is the biggest asset our company has," Ramos said.

Someone who believes in investing in entrepreneurs and companies like Ramos' is Paul Allen, CEO and founder of Provo Labs. Allen is a serial and parallel entrepreneur who has launched several successful companies including Infobases Inc., Ancestry.com, MyFamily.com and 10x Marketing.

In 2003, he decided to become a "parallel entrepreneur" or someone who is involved with forming new companies whenever it is necessary to execute a new idea.

In December 2005 Provo Labs was created.

Frequent travelers on 900 East may have noticed the new sign and building across from The BYU Creamery. The sign reads "Provo Labs Academy. Leasing start-up companies 1-3 persons."

"We're kind of an incubator for an early investment fund," said Paul Allen, the CEO and founder of Provo Labs.

The building on 900 East provides a library of books, magazines and other resources about entrepreneurship. There is also a small workspace, high speed internet, phone lines, and weekly training on every topic an Entrepreneur needs to know, he said.

Three kinds of training are provided to the students at Provo Labs. The first is an Internet marketing class on how to draw people to the site, taught by Allen. The second kind is on a variety of business topics taught by experts in that area. The third is a brainstorming session where each participant can voice challenges facing his or her progress and have all the participants, including Allen, help solve the problem either through business contacts or suggested strategy.

So far, about 50 people have called for more information and expressed interest in Provo Labs, Allen said.

Right now, about seven companies are taking advantage of the Provo Labs Academy opportunity. In the next month or two, Provo Labs hopes to have 30 companies working with them, Allen said.

Patricia Sheranian, office manager for Provo Labs Academy, is the current contact for entrepreneurs interesting in the opportunities being offered. She says she loves working there and the energy involved with Provo Labs.

Entrepreneurs interesting in learning more about Provo Labs Academy can get more information by calling Sheranian at 801 373-6565.

Copyright Brigham Young University 10 Oct 2006