LAS VEGAS (FOX5) — A new entrepreneur center aimed at growing small businesses and training young workers is coming to Las Vegas’ Historic Westside.
MYS Firm and Sumnu Marketing broke ground Monday, April 6, near J Street and Owens Avenue on a 4,000-square-foot executive office building and Community E-Center. Leaders say the project will house two small businesses and include a flexible training space for entrepreneurs, with the goal of revitalizing the neighborhood, creating jobs, and helping residents build businesses in their own community.
The Community E-Center will focus on teaching entrepreneurship to young people ages 14 to 24, while also helping adults sharpen job skills through innovation and critical thinking programs.
“Something like this is so important. We need to see examples of what’s possible, and although it’s a relatively small project, I feel that it has a very large impact,” said Myisha Boyce, president of MYS Firm. “When you see how we are surrounded by the community and the support that’s there, behind small business in the region, it just really speaks to the strength of Las Vegas.”
Shondell Newsome, founder of Sumnu Marketing, said the center is about building real pathways.
“We wanted to make sure that when people are talking about building businesses, they build them the right way,” Newsome said. “As two small businesses that have gone through sometimes a great recession or the global pandemic or any other economic downturn, we know exactly what needs to be done.”
The groundbreaking drew a standing-room-only crowd, including Mayor Shelley Berkley and U.S. Rep. Steven Horsford.
“This Community E-Center is a statement. It’s a statement that our community believes in its entrepreneurs,” Horsford said, noting that more than 90% of Nevada businesses are small businesses. “In order to grow, in order to prosper, in order to develop, we need to support our small businesses.”
Berkley said the project reflects the city’s commitment to the Historic Westside.
“With every groundbreaking, with every ribbon cutting that I’ve had the privilege of participating in, I realized that our dreams and hopes and aspirations are actually coming true,” she said.
Sumnu Marketing, which has 12 employees, said it has trained youth and young adults through internships for 20 years. The company also pointed to the broader impact of small business statewide, noting that Nevada small businesses employ more than 42% of the state’s workers.
The building is expected to open in summer 2027.
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