Richard Branson Virgin

Article Overview: Its name may raise some eyebrows, but there can be no doubt as to the tremendous success of the Richard Branson Virgin Group. Run as a cluster of separate and distinct companies that come together under the Virgin brand, this Group was first established by British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson. With services that range from travel and music to wine, cosmetics, and even bridal wear, Virgin remains one of the most successful privately held corporations in the U.K., and indeed, the world.

Richard Branson Virgin

Its name may raise some eyebrows, but there can be no doubt as to the tremendous success of the Richard Branson Virgin Group. Run as a cluster of separate and distinct companies that come together under the Virgin brand, this Group was first established by British entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson. With services that range from travel and music to wine, cosmetics, and even bridal wear, Virgin remains one of the most successful privately held corporations in the U.K., and indeed, the world.

For this entrepreneur, having his own company was his opportunity to run things his way. He retains complete control over the brand, and either minority or majority stakes in each individual company. While most of the original companies began as subsidiaries of Virgin, today, Branson often simply licenses the brand name to other outside companies. With revenues in excess of $7 billion and more than 35,000 employees, he must be doing something right.

Many of the brands that operate under the company are well known to people the world over: Virgin Atlantic Airways, Virgin Records, and Virgin Balloon Flights. However, the majority of his business ventures operate with much less fanfare and publicity. For instance, Virgin Limobike offers passenger bike service throughout London, while Virgin Nigeria is a Lagos-based airline offering regional, domestic, and international flights from Nigeria. Other companies include Radio Free Virgin, an Internet radio broadcaster, and Virgin Fuel, a venture capital firm that invests in fuel alternatives.

As the years pass, the empire of the Richard Branson Virgin Group only seems to get bigger. Consistently ranked one of the most respected brands in Britain, there are today over 200 companies that are joined together under the Virgin brand. It has indeed gone a long way from its mail order origins. However, the Group is not simply known the world over because of its large size and reach. It has also established a reputation as being one of the most innovative and unique brands in operation at present.

When it was trying to come up with fresh ideas for business travel, the group decided to place a rubber ducky in each and every one of the bathrooms of Virgin-owned hotels in order to make guests feel at home. When passengers aboard a Virgin Atlantic flight are watching a movie, they can also enjoy a Virgin ice cream. Virgin Megastores also became the first major music retail outlets to put Listening Posts in their stores, allowing customers to listen to entire CDs before making their purchase.

Time and again, the Richard Branson Virgin Group has seized every opportunity to not only expand its already vast range of services, but also to commit to continually improving them. Branson has demonstrated that both he and his company are game for anything, and willing to ride whatever waves come their way. “The conventional wisdom is you should specialize in what you know and never stray from that, but no other brand has become a way-of-life brand the way Virgin has,” says Branson. “And it wasn’t us setting out to become a way-of-life brand; it was me continually being interested in learning new things.”

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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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