We all have heard of the company Virgin Group. The credit for the success of the Virgin Group goes to Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group. Richard is a business tycoon and philanthropist who owns the Virgin group. With over 400 companies under its name, Virgin group is one of the biggest parenting company. An entrepreneur, Branson has lived an extraordinary life and has faced the ups and downs which are a part of life. By embracing his moments of success and struggles, Branson has been able to learn from his tough days!
| Name | Richard Branson |
|---|---|
| Born | Blackheath, London, United Kingdom |
| Age | 70 |
| Citizenship | British |
| Education | Scaitcliffe School, Stowe School |
| Title | Founder of Virgin Group |
| Occupation | Businessman, Author |
| Net Worth | USD 440 crores |
| Awards | The Drum's Lifetime Achievement Award |
Why Branson is one of the Best Entrepreneurs?
With a knack of making money, Branson could sense an opportunity where there was no scope of making money. Virgin Records was his first venture as an entrepreneur. The company’s first record shop was situated in Oxfordshire, England. However, his efforts in music lead him to raise his empire and establish Virgin Atlantic. Today, at the age of 67, he is still working to expand his legacy!
Initial days of Richard Branson
Born in 1950 in Surrey, England, Branson did not perform well in studies. At the age of 16, he decided to drop out of school. This paved the way for him to establish Student. This was a youth-culture magazine for students. The first issue of the magazine came in 1966 and it sold around $8,000 in advertising and 50,000 in copies.
His location in London enabled him to take a deep interest in the British music scene. This paved the way for the birth of the Virgin. This was a mail-order company that funded his magazine. Furthermore, the company’s earnings enabled Richard Branson to open up a record shop in Oxford Street, London.
The very first signing of the company was Mike Oldfield in 1973. His song Tubular Bells topped the UK music charts for 247 weeks. Well, this stunning success of the company shows the ability of Richard Branson to spot talent. This was just the beginning of many more successful signings for the company. later on, the company signed many more artists like Rolling Stone, Sex Pistols, and Culture Club.
Ups and Lows of Virgin Records
However, the company was not able to hold up to the mountain of success for a very long time. The financial struggles haunted the company in 1992. Therefore, the company was having problems staying afloat in the circuit. The very next year, Branson had to sell the company to THORN EMI for $1 billion. To keep himself in the entrepreneurship line, Branson added two travel companies under his name. The brands were Voyager Group and Virgin Atlantic.
Selling the Virgin Records was never easy for Branson. He was mentally affected by his loss. However, he never let the negativity affect his life. In the same year, he opened up another company named Virgin Radio. After three years, the company signed many big artists like Tom Jones and many more to name.
Apart from selling Virgin Radio, he had to face the setbacks of the failures of many companies. The companies under his belt like Virgin Cola, Virgin Cosmetics, and Virgin Brides were failures in the circuit. In 2012, the company had to stop the production of the drink. His company, the Virgin Brides was a short-lived venture. This brand stopped operating in 2007.
Although all these ventures stopped operating, Branson was never disappointed in his efforts. He learned from every failure and hence came back better with a new company.
Diversifying the Virgin Groups
Branson, after going through the failures of many ventures, decided to diversify his business. He added an airline named Virgin Atlantic in 1984. His other big firms include Virgin Media, Virgin Money, and Trains. All these companies fall into one parent organization, named Virgin Group. Presently, this group oversees more than 200 companies. These companies are present in Canada, Australia, the United States, and parts of Asia, Europe, and South Africa.
Companies Launched by Richard Branson
| Year | Company Name |
|---|---|
| 1969 | Virgin |
| 1970 | Virgin Mail Order Records |
| 1972 | Virgin Records |
| 1981 | Virgin Books, Virgin Video |
| 1984 | Virgin Atlantic |
| 1997 | Virgin Trains |
| 2001 | Virgin Mobile as a joint venture with Sprint |
| 2004 | Virgin Galactic |
Branson has tried his hand in Space and high-speed travel too. His spaceship company is known as Virgin Galactic. He had established this company to achieve his dream of exploring the outer world. The creation of Space and high-speed travel gives us proof that Branson has an exemplary vision. Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo has successfully made its first test flight of the craft’s atmospheric re-entry to the system. This spaceship could accommodate six passengers and two pilots.
Since Branson brought up Virgin Galactic, more than 700 customers have brought tickets to space flights.
Being a hard taskmaster and a highly ambitious business leader, he has worked for the development of mankind in every possible way he could.
His latest investment was in Hyperloop One. The company builds high-speed transport and cargo pods that travel at a speed of 250 miles per hour. To achieve this speed, the magnetic levitation moves the pods on the top of a track resulting in airline speeds that led the pods to move over long distances.
The Philanthropist Branson
The story of Branson is not only about creating wealth, but it is about putting the hard work into worthy causes. Branson started his first charity at the age of 17. Since then, he has been donating for the betterment of society. His philanthropic works include improving the livelihood of the backward sections in the African continent. Also, he has pledged to donate $3 billion to address the issue of global warming that has been haunting the world.
Virgin Money Giving is 100 per cent not-for-profit – it does not make any profit on any donations and never will. Here’s how Virgin Money Giving was created and how it works https://t.co/81U6fTXiTI @VMGiving pic.twitter.com/LBQOysaFEz
— Richard Branson (@richardbranson) April 17, 2020
Honors and Awards
Well, taking about Richard Branson education, In 1993, he was the recipient of the honorary degree of Doctor of Technology from Loughborough University. In 2000, he was knighted by Charles, Prince of Wales. Mr. Branson was inducted into the International Air and Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego and space Musem. He has been a regular member of the greatest Britons too. Due to his exemplary work, he received the Business Peace Award by the Business for Peace Foundation in Norway.
Being an entrepreneur who had to face struggles during his life as a businessman, Mr. Branson is one of the greatest entrepreneurs in the modern-day era.
Author: Gorish Dua
Source : https://startuptalky.com/founder-richard-branson/
Date : 2020-08-27T15:50:05.000Z