Deckinger said that it was a coup for his business

Users of dating website Jess, Meet Ken soar as startup MassChallenge prepares to seek funding

Ken Deckinger is the co-founder and CEO of Jess, Meet Ken, an online dating site that allows females to create profiles of single males they know but aren’t romantically interested in, but who could be good matches for other single women. The startup was accepted into this year’s accelerator program of MassChallenge startup and aims to launch a fund-raising round this fall.

Co-founder and CEO of Boston-based online dating site Jess, Meet Ken, Ken Deckinger, estimates that nearly 3,000 marriages will occur in several years if the website has 1 million members.

The site, which launched this February, is on road to hit that member base within several years, as long as it continues scaling with the startup accelerator program MassChallenge’s help and some angel funding, said Deckinger.

Deckinger said that without disclosing specifics the website has grown to “many thousands” of members since its launch in February, and those members are creating a lot of profiles of eligible bachelors in Boston and New York City mainly.

The website differs from most online dating websites in that it anables women to “call the shots” and create single men’s profiles who they know but aren’t romantically interested in, but who could be very good matches for other females, said Deckinger. Women can ask then to be introduced to a guy that another woman avouches for.

The startup purposes to launch a formal fund-raising round in the fall —targeting mostly angel investors — which will coincide with the official launch of Jess, Meet Ken to the general public. Until now, co-founders and Deckinger have funded the website with an unevealed amount of personal money.

Fund-raising round money will be used to launch a mobile app, boost marketing efforts and sales, and hire employees, Deckinger said, who co-founded online dating service HurryDate and speed dating previously, acquired in 2007 by Los Angeles-based Spark Networks (which owns ChristianMingle and JDate also).

In May, the startup was accepted into the four-month MassChallenge accelerator program, where it gets free co-working space, along with services such as legal advice and mentorship. Deckinger said that it was a coup for his business.