Richard Branson Biography

Article Overview: Much like the public has come to expect the unexpected from this unpredictable British entrepreneur, so too is the Richard Branson biography a story of ups and downs, antics and wild behaviour, and both successes and failures. To learn about this Virgin Knight is to understand more about a man who has refused to follow convention, who has pursued and achieved his dreams his way, and who seems to have had more fun than most along the way.

Richard Branson Biography

Much like the public has come to expect the unexpected from this unpredictable British entrepreneur, so too is the Richard Branson biography a story of ups and downs, antics and wild behaviour, and both successes and failures. To learn about this Virgin Knight is to understand more about a man who has refused to follow convention, who has pursued and achieved his dreams his way, and who seems to have had more fun than most along the way.

This is a story that begins on July 18, 1950 in Shamley Green, Surrey, England. Growing up in a traditional family, Branson struggled throughout school due to an as of yet undiagnosed problem of dyslexia. He excelled in sports, serving as the captain of both his school’s football and cricket teams, but it was in business that he found his true calling. Despite failing in two early ventures – growing Christmas trees and raising Australian parrots – he was determined to create his own successful business.

When he was 16 years old, he dropped out of school to move to London and launch Student Magazine, which did see relatively more success. But, it was in founding the Virgin mail order record company three years later that his life would become something of real significance. His success in selling mail order records led to the opening of a record shop on Oxford Street in London, and soon after, Branson’s very own record label, Virgin Records.

The success of Virgin Records allowed Branson to buy an estate in the country, on which he built a recording studio and leased time out to struggling artists. On May 25, 1973, the Richard Branson biography took on a whole new dimension with the release of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells – the first release for Virgin Records, which quickly became a best-seller throughout England. In a relatively short period, what Branson started as a mail order company had become one of the more significant record labels in the U.K. From thereon out, Virgin Records would continue to know much mainstream success.

On the road to success, this life story would also be filled with much controversy. From signing notorious bands such as the Sex Pistols to purchasing the gay nightclub Heaven and entering the struggling airline industries with Virgin Atlantic, Branson has not shied away from challenging pursuits. Indeed, it seems to be the very challenge that he has been after.

Despite selling the Virgin record label to EMI in 1992, the entrepreneur continues to make headlines: he was in the news after launching Virgin Galactic, a new space tourism company, in 2004; he established a school for entrepreneurship in South Africa; and, more recently, he committed to investing $3 billion of Virgin’s profits over the next ten years to help in the fight against global warming.

The Richard Branson biography is not your typical story of business success. Branson has used eccentric means and traveled unconventional roads to get to where he is today, but sitting atop a fortune of almost $8 billion, few can question his entrepreneurial savvy.

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Article Tags: australian parrots, british entrepreneur, christmas trees, cricket teams, dyslexia, early ventures, mail order company, new dimension, oldfields, oxford street, record labels, richard branson biography, schools football, surrey england, true calling, tubular bells, ups, ups and downs, virgin knight, virgin records



Related Forum Posts
Re: Business 2012 in London - [quote="bjsteele":wu04qnmy]I don't know Richard Branson. Could you introduce him simply? What is he speaking about?[/quote:wu04qnmy] You were asking who Richard Branson is, well after a few false starts his first successful business venture was producing a magazine called ‘student’ which he launched in 1968. He then started selling records by mail order in 1970 before opening his own record shop in Oxford Street in 1971. He then opened the Virgin recording studio in 1972 followed by his own Virgin Records label in 1973 and the rest is history. He is the founder and inspiration for all things Virgin now such as Virgin Telecoms, Virgin Atlantic Airline, Virgin Records, Virgin Racing, Virgin Bank and Building Society amongst many others here and abroad and I would like to get to London to meet him and listen to what he has to say. Sir Richard Branson as he is now has been drafted in as one of several ambassadors to bolster Britain's image abroad. The initiative will be launched across 17 key cities, including LA, Tokyo, Beijing and Sydney, with events including a show in Rio during which images of Britain will be beamed onto Sugarloaf Mountain. regards, Mal.
Re: Business 2012 in London - I don't know Richard Branson. Could you introduce him simply? What is he speaking about?
Re: Business 2012 in London - Yes, sorry it's London England. But Richard Branson does get around on the conference circuit and always has international dates lined up too...
Losing My Virginity - I would like to second what Jennifer said about the recommendation of Richard Branson's book, "Losing My Virginity." This story-line book shows the inner-workings of the brilliant entrepreneur from his beginnings at age 11 when he first started his own magazine publication. This will allow a glimpse into the personality and mind-set that allowed Richard Branson to eventually become the entrepreneurial success that he is today. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. A very informative read. -Brandon
You don't need a degree to be an Entrepreneur - You don't need a dergree to be an entrepreneur, if in doubt please ask Bill Gates Micheal Dell Richard Branson and host of others ....................


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