All great ideas begin on the back of a napkin. Doug McKinlay and Jeff Sheets used
a local diner's napkin to conceive the idea of the BYU AdLab. "We had been thinking
for some time that there needed to be a place for kids to get together outside of class
to think and talk about their ideas," Doug remembers. They began working to make
the idea a reality.The lab started in a closet. Literally. They soon obtained their first
professional client: the BYU Bookstore. After success with branding the bookstore
and executing several campaigns, other companies off campus were
convinced to give them a try.

With time, the AdLab got a promotion to a non-closet and now consists of over 100
students. Nationally recognized, the AdLab has received several awards including a
Professional One Show Pencil for the Holiday Inn-Stay U campaign. With more
students joining everyday, the AdLab looks forward to more opportunities to become
even better.