Bristol-based Sparkol, which makes the leading whiteboard animation software VideoScribe, has been acquired from its founder by its CEO.
Zoe Taylor, pictured, takes over the 10-year-old firm, which employs more than 25 people, as it aims to build on the success of VideoScribe with new products, a wider distribution network and additional sharing platforms. Collaboration will also be key for the company as it looks for new partners to drive growth. 
Established in 2008 by entrepreneur Jon Air, Sparkol was founded with the aim of developing a product that provided an engaging way to present and share ideas quickly and easily.
Sparkol has developed a suite of creative products and intuitive software tools that enable people to communicate with an international audience, whatever the complexity of their message. This includes the recently launched StoryPix which quickly transforms simple photos into detailed explainer presentations.
VideoScribe, its most successful product, was launched in 2012. More than 2m users have signed up across 140 countries from companies of every size and across all business sectors, charities and education. It was the first program to enable easy self-made whiteboard animations and has been awarded the Marketing on Mobile 2013 Award (MOMA) for best business-to-business app and was a finalist for the Cubic 2017 Awards for Learning Technology of the Year.
Zoe joined Sparkol in 2014 as COO and has been CEO since November 2016.
She said: “I’m passionate about helping people quickly and easily bring their storytelling to life on an equal footing, globally, irrespective of size or budget.
“Thanks to our dedicated and knowledgeable team, we are empowering more people than ever to engage their audiences and I’m excited to lead the company into a new era.”
Sparkol also offers professional services for customers who wish to utilise Sparkol’s years of experience to create high-quality explainer videos, custom illustrations and staff training.
