One Spark facts for kids

Quick facts for kids One Spark
Genre	Crowdfunding
Dates	April 6–7, 2016
Frequency	Annual
Location(s)	Jacksonville, Florida
Years active	12
Inaugurated	2013
Founders	Elton Rivas, Dennis Eusebio, Varick Rosete
Most recent	2018 (2018)
Attendance	320,000 (2015)
Organized by	One Spark, Inc.

One Spark was a special yearly festival held in Downtown Jacksonville, Florida, USA. It was all about crowdfunding. This means people with cool ideas could show them off. Visitors to the festival could then help fund these ideas.

The festival featured many different kinds of projects. These included art, new inventions, music, science, and technology. Besides crowdfunding, One Spark also offered chances for private investors to support projects. There were also speakers, music, and other fun entertainment. The first One Spark festival happened in 2013.

History of One Spark

How One Spark Started

One Spark was first thought of in 2011. Three young professionals from Jacksonville, Elton Rivas, Dennis Eusebio, and Varick Rosete, came up with the idea. They were involved in the city's startup scene. A startup is a new company or project.

Elton Rivas was inspired by a book about building new business communities. He wanted to help Jacksonville's startup culture grow. The organizers planned One Spark to be like other big festivals. They wanted a place where inventors, business owners, and artists could show their projects. Festival visitors would then vote on which projects should get prize money.

The idea for One Spark grew quickly. Another arts festival project, called Epoch Project, stopped its plans in 2012. They then supported One Spark instead. By August 2012, One Spark had raised $300,000 in private donations. This allowed them to hire a full-time team to organize the event. By October, they had found sponsors for $250,000 in prize money. They also raised $90,000 through Kickstarter to help with event costs. A big supporter was Peter Rummell, a former Disney executive. He gave $750,000 to the project.

Early Festivals and Growth

The very first One Spark festival took place from April 17–21, 2013. About 900 "creators" showed their work. These projects were displayed in different places across Downtown Jacksonville. Around 130,000 people visited the festival over five days.

For the 2014 festival, One Spark offered more prize money. They added prizes chosen by judges and extra bonus awards. A group of investors, led by Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan, also promised up to $3.25 million. This money was for private investments in individual projects. The 2014 event ran from April 9–13.

The original founders, Rivas, Eusebio, and Rosete, were on One Spark's Board of Directors. Joe Sampson, a marketing executive, became the executive director in 2013.

One Spark Festival Years

One Spark 2013 Highlights

The first One Spark festival was held from April 17–21, 2013. It had 130,000 visitors. There were 59 different places where projects were shown. About 900 creators participated with 406 projects. Over 53,000 unique votes were cast. These votes helped distribute $250,000 in crowdfunding money. Creators received money based on the votes they got from visitors.

The festival also had "pitch decks" where successful people shared their experiences. There were music stages, food areas, and places to get drinks.

One Spark 2014 Highlights

One Spark's second event was from April 9–13, 2014. It attracted 260,000 people. There were 610 creators showing their ideas. Visitors cast 120,493 votes, sharing $310,000 among the projects.

One Spark Berlin

In 2014, the festival organizers announced a second event. It was called One Spark START: Berlin. This event was held from September 12–13, 2014, in Berlin, Germany. Unlike the Jacksonville festival, which was a street event, One Spark Berlin was held in one location.

One Spark 2015 Highlights

One Spark's third event was from April 7–12, 2015, in downtown Jacksonville. It had the highest attendance ever for a One Spark event, with over 320,000 visitors. One Spark claimed it was the world's largest crowdfunding event.

One Spark 2016 Highlights

Organizers changed One Spark for 2016. It was held on April 6–7. The event was shorter, lasting only two days, due to money reasons. Prizes were also smaller, and fewer people contributed.

The street festival part of One Spark joined with Downtown Jacksonville's monthly Art Walk. This combined event was called "Spark Walk" and happened on Wednesday, April 6. Thursday, April 7, featured a One Spark Innovation Day. This day included speakers and a "Spark Tank" event. In Spark Tank, judges ranked the creators. One Spark estimated about 70,000 people attended Spark Walk.

One Spark 2017 and 2018

The 2017 festival was planned for October 6–7 at EverBank Field. A concert was also planned for October 5 at Daily's Place. However, the festival had to be postponed. This was because of Hurricane Irma and the cleanup efforts after the storm. So, 2017 was the first year without a One Spark festival since it began.

The next One Spark festival was then scheduled for April 6–7, 2018. Organizers announced the return of the festival.

How One Spark Worked

One Spark was a multi-day event. Creators, artists, and innovators could show their projects. These projects were displayed in many different places in downtown Jacksonville. The main goal of One Spark was to connect people with great ideas. It helped them find the support they needed to make their ideas happen. It was like a community helping good ideas come to life.

One Spark was open to everyone. Projects could be at any stage of development. The event believed that great ideas could come from anywhere. They just needed access to money and help. In the Jacksonville events from 2013 to 2015, the venues chose which creators to host. Then, visitors decided who got funded. Showing your project at One Spark gave you access to crowdfunding money and awards. It also offered chances for large investments and direct donations from visitors. Starting in 2015, a group of experts and investors also selected creators to participate.

The festival was a great way to show an idea to thousands of people. You could get feedback and see if your idea was popular. As a visitor, you could see the newest inventions. You also had the power to help make them real by voting for your favorite project.

Prizes and Funding

Besides direct donations from visitors, One Spark also gave extra prize money. This included a main crowdfund, prizes chosen by judges, and chances for direct investments.

Creators could raise money in four main ways:

• They could impress visitors and get votes. The more votes a project got, the more of the main crowdfund money it earned.
• Visitors could give money directly to projects.
• Experts in different fields would choose additional prize money for new projects in each category. Projects with the most votes also got extra bonus prizes.
• There were millions of dollars in possible investments. Investors came to the festival looking for new opportunities.

Creator Projects at One Spark

The most important part of the event was the Creator projects. People could visit creators as they showed their ideas. These ideas were displayed in different places throughout downtown Jacksonville. Visitors could give money to the projects they wanted to see funded.

Creators were people with ideas in art, new inventions, music, science, and technology. They turned these ideas into "Projects" to show at the festival. A Project was a specific plan or design with a clear goal. A project could be in any stage of development. The goal was for it to be completed and produce something new.

Pitch Decks

Pitch Decks were a way for creators to reach many people. They could explain their ideas quickly. Creators were scheduled to go on stage and "pitch" their projects. This helped promote their idea and increased their chances of getting funded.

Fun at the Festival

The event had great entertainment all day and into the night. Visitors could also go to Food Villages. These had special tastes from the city's best chefs and food trucks. There was also a Beer Village for locally made beer.

One Spark After Dark

After the main festival, creators and visitors could meet up. They could enjoy local pubs, bars, and special VIP lounges. There were parties and live entertainment all around.

One Spark for Kids

This event was designed for everyone, including families. Families could bring their kids to experience new ideas firsthand. There was also plenty of kid-friendly programming. Different activities were planned each day to make it fun for younger family members.

Past Event Details

Speakers Series

Speakers at One Spark were pioneers and visionaries. They had big ideas to share. In 2014, the Speaker Series featured top minds in design, business, and innovation.

Some main speakers in 2014 included Scott Stratten, a social marketing expert from Canada. Another was James White, an artist and designer from Canada. The series took place on Thursday, April 10, and Friday, April 11, during One Spark. Doc Waller, an inspiration architect, hosted the two-day event.

The second day of One Spark 2016 also featured speakers. They focused on helping creators develop their ideas and on venture capital. This was held at the Hyatt Regency on April 7.

Attendance History

This table shows how many people attended One Spark each year.