Wieden + Kennedy was founded by Dan Wieden and David Kennedy in Portland, Oregon on April Fools day 1982. Every year each office in the network celebrates Founders’ Day on (or as near as we can get it) the 1st of April. The whole agency takes a day off from day to day work to spend some time together, do something bonkers and celebrate the very special place and culture that Dan and Dave created all those years ago.

Every year is different, there is usually some sort of challenge (in the past we’ve made pop promos; recreated famous movie trailers; developed our own art installations, and even escaped from Zombies) which culminates in a massive party or sleepover somewhere fun. We’ve had our own island for a night, bravely camped out at WK Scout Camp (not for the faint hearted in chilly April) and gone full glamour at our own ballroom. We’ve taken people to the future; gone back to school; and done a decent amount of fairly embarrassing stuff right on our doorstep.

We are very proud of Founders’ Day and the unique way each year we choose to celebrate the creativity and culture that makes W+K so special. Even if we do end up doing something really stupid in the name of it.