Richard Branson

Biography

Branson built the Virgin brand as a licence to enter any industry with stuffy incumbents — records, airlines, trains, mobile, banking, spaceflight — usually with a publicity stunt attached. Necker Island, his Caribbean base, doubles as a summit venue for the philanthropic ventures of his later career.

British entrepreneur whose Virgin brand spans airlines, hotels, health clubs and commercial spaceflight.

Known for

The Virgin Group — airlines, music, mobile and spaceflight.

Notable works & defining projects

• Virgin Records
• Virgin Atlantic
• Virgin Galactic

Notable achievements

• Founded Virgin as a mail-order record business in 1970 and Virgin Atlantic in 1984
• Flew to the edge of space aboard Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity in July 2021
• Knighted in 2000 for services to entrepreneurship

Timeline

1. 1970Started Virgin as a mail-order record business and student magazine spin-off
2. 1973Virgin Records launched with Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells, an era-defining hit
3. 2021Flew to the edge of space on Virgin Galactic's Unity 22 mission

Did you know?

• He is dyslexic and left school at 16 with his headmaster reportedly predicting he would 'either go to prison or become a millionaire'
• He has set records crossing the Atlantic by boat and balloon