At Lufthansa Innovation Day, Nelson delivers a talk on why innovation culture should be the main focus of any innovation department. This marks his final month and public appearance as a senior innovation manager at Lufthansa Airlines, signaling that something new is on the horizon.

The brainstorming begins. After months of contemplating the launch of a dedicated innovation agency, ideas start to materialize into brand sketches. The WeSpark name and logo are thoughtfully crafted to encapsulate the belief: "The world is full of problems, but together we can create new ideas to tackle them."

Aiming to stand apart from "innovation consultants" who merely talk about innovation, Nelson decides to take action. On March 21st, he contacts a notary, and by the next morning, the founding documents are signed. Unexpectedly, the company is legally established—a happy accident that sets WeSpark in motion. Innovation ahead!

In a small London flat, the first version of the Innovation Helmet is created to visualize the concept that "innovation starts in the head." Initially a film prop, this helmet will later be seen by over a hundred million people across stickers, GIFs, articles, and even on TV.

Kristofer Norvik takes on the challenge of creating WeSpark's first video advertisement.

Check out the Behind the Scenes Video here!

After six months of learning the ropes of sales, WeSpark secures its first contract with a major German bank and asset manager. The project involves introducing their team to virtual reality technologies applied to finance. Abdul, a close friend of WeSpark, joins to lend his expertise during the educational workshop.

Friends and volunteers come together to organize WeSpark's first public Meetup event, where participants explore the benefits of the creative "Innovation Theater" methodology.

Mariya begins supporting WeSpark as a freelancer, focusing on developing a clear brand strategy for the innovation agency—a strategy that remains in use to this day.

Over 70 participants attend a WeSpark event filled with sushi, pizza, wine, laughter, and magical learning moments. That evening, a special attendee decides to collaborate with WeSpark, leading to their first contract with a Fortune 500 client.

WeSpark releases its first video advertisement across all social media platforms. This video continues to inspire workshop participants today

Watch the WeSpark Video here.

As the COVID-19 pandemic looms, panic begins to spread in Germany. Clients start canceling workshops, and WeSpark's workshops begin to empty. Challenging times lie ahead.

Just as WeSpark starts to grow and gain traction, the pandemic hits—bringing the first humbling lesson. The strategy shifts toward facilitating digital workshops online, but the months ahead are tough.

2020 becomes a year of helping others and giving back. We begin volunteering with the Gloria Kriete Foundation, designing and delivering online educational webinars to support communities during these challenging times.

Forbes Central America covers our entrepreneurial journey.

Read the article here. [Spanish]

Mariya and Nelson travel to Iceland to represent the WeSpark team. We get invited to participate and volunteer by facilitating workshops and seminars during an educational event for young talents hosted in the capital of the land of fire and ice.

Nelson gets invited to give his first TEDxTalk in Vaduz, Liechtenstein—nearly 10 months before the event takes place.

Luckily, WeSpark survives the early months of the pandemic, and by the end of 2020, Jorge joins the team as our first official hire. He starts as Product Development & Technology Engineer and stays with us for the next four years.

We also move out of WeWork Labs and into our first tiny office.

We kick off 2021 with a fresh wave of new customers. A trend starts to become clearer—many come to us for help innovating around education.

Here’s one of the rare pictures we have in that first tiny office.

Clara joins the team temporarily to help us design and publish more educational content for our social media channels.

A few months after moving into our first tiny office, we decide to get a bit more comfortable—and sign for a space 20 times bigger. We bring in our innovation toys, and just like that, the Spark Hub is born.

Nathalie joins WeSpark for a year to boost our marketing strategy and support our Business Development efforts.

Jorge and Nelson disassemble the original blue WeSpark helmet and begin building version 2—this time in our “Yellow Spark” brand color.

A few moments later (and with lots of tinkering), the V2 WeSpark Innovation Helmet is ready for its debut.

After months of preparation, Nelson and his family travel to Vaduz, Liechtenstein to participate in TEDxVaduz.

Watch Nelson's TEDxTalk: Are Schools Prepared for the Future?

Andrea joins us for half a year to support WeSpark’s creative work. Her imagination helps us visualize posts and tackle bigger creative projects.

We begin experimenting with blockchain technology—mixing our creativity with a passion for digital solutions. This marks a major strategic shift as WeSpark starts exploring the world of digital assets that eventually will lead the innovation agency towards Bitcoin.

While not a key milestone in our journey, it’s a good time to highlight that we never take ourselves too seriously. At WeSpark, we believe enjoying the hard process matters just as much as the outcome. Here’s a Halloween photo to prove it!

After nearly a year at the Spark Hub, we say goodbye. The ongoing ups and downs of the pandemic lead us to embrace a remote-first model once again.

The year kicks off with transformation. We dive into new topics like sovereignty, freedom technologies, and Bitcoin—finding deep alignment with our values.

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We continue to serve clients remotely, with a growing focus on education and training—always rooted in our innovation mindset.

Following our Bitcoin exploration, WeSpark begins advising the Government of El Salvador. We train the legal team at the Presidential House using highly visual, interactive workshops that make a complex topic easy to grasp—and harder to forget.

Our Bitcoin-learning journey takes us back to El Salvador, where our story gets featured in the Bitcoineros documentary by ARD and ZDF.

We receive an award from the Gloria Kriete Foundation, recognizing WeSpark as a key partner in their educational mission.

After two years of volunteering with the Gloria Kriete Foundation, it’s time to take things further. Juana and Nelson sign a Memorandum of Understanding to formalize a strategic partnership between the foundation and WeSpark.

Right place, right time. Our deep dive into Bitcoin sparks a new curiosity around financial education—and opens doors to unexpected places.

WeSpark wins a competitive RFP to serve a North American government institution. Competing against large creative agencies, our rare mix of education, gamification, and design skills makes us the chosen partner.

We strengthen our strategic partnership with the Gloria Kriete Foundation by volunteering two full weeks to train and workshop with hundreds of teachers and students across the country.

A short trip takes us to New York before returning to Germany.

The Bitcoin Atlantis event by FREE Madeira brings us to the beautiful island of Madeira. We continue building strong relationships with other Bitcoiners and entrepreneurs.

We begin harnessing the power of Artificial Intelligence by training our first customized chat agents—a skillset that quickly becomes a staple of our weekly work.

After over a year of investing in and supporting a decentralized marketing platform that reached over 110,000 users, the project ultimately fails. We step back with lessons learned. Sharing our real-world experiences, even the hard ones, remains part of how we deliver value and grow.

After years based in Germany, Nelson Inno, founder of WeSpark, decides to leave Europe. The WeSpark team temporarily shrinks as the company prepares to cross continents—an emotional but necessary leap to pursue new opportunities.

The chapter that began in Germany makes way for a new one. This time, WeSpark sets its sights on supporting innovation in Central America—especially in El Salvador, a fast-developing, tech- and Bitcoin-friendly country.

Nelson attends the Adopting Bitcoin conference to position WeSpark as the go-to innovation agency in the region.

Nelson Inno publishes his first book, Unstable Innovation, to help aspiring innovators navigate the uncertainty and fast change of today’s world. The book was edited by Adam Nili and powered by WeSpark.

Download the eBook [PDF] for free at unstableinnovation.com

Thanks to the Gloria Kriete Foundation, Unstable Innovation launches in Spanish as Innovación Inestable. Over 500 readers now own a physical or digital copy of the book.

On WeSpark’s 6th anniversary, 21st of March, the company is officially founded in El Salvador as WeSpark S.A.S. de C.V.
 

The moment marks a leadership evolution. Adam Nili joins as Co-Founder and CSO, helping take WeSpark to the next level. With this new chapter, Adam puts the “We” into WeSpark, and Nelson Inno transitions from CEO to CVO.

Five years after their first collaboration, Juana, Adam, and Nelson renew the strategic alliance between WeSpark and the Gloria Kriete Foundation—doubling down on their joint mission to elevate education in El Salvador.