Timeline of Richard Branson's business ventures
This is a list of Richard Branson's business ventures from the 1960s to today.
1960s
[edit]- 1966 – After failed attempts to grow and sell both Christmas trees and budgerigars, Branson launches his first successful business, a magazine named Student, the first issue of which appearing in January 1968.[1] Branson's net worth was estimated at £50,000 by 1969.
1970s
[edit]- 1970 – Start selling records by mail-order[citation needed]
- 1971 – Opens his first record shop on Oxford Street[citation needed]
- 1972 – Opens a Virgin Recording Studio[citation needed]
- 1973 – Launches Virgin Records record label [1]
- 1979 – Buys the gay nightclub Heaven, located under Charing Cross railway station. It was sold in 2003 to a private buyer.[citation needed] Branson's net worth was estimated at £5 million by 1979.
1980s
[edit]- 1980 – Virgin Records goes international[citation needed]
- 1981 – Virgin buys the Kensington Roof Gardens[2]
- 1983 – Virgin Vision, later to become Virgin Communications, is formed to distribute films and videos in the television and broadcasting sector.[3]
- 1983 – Virgin Games is launched.
- 1984 – Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Cargo are launched.[1]
- 1984 – Virgin Vision (launched the previous year) launches "Music Box", a 24-hour satellite music station.
- 1985 – Virgin Group now includes record labels, retail outlets, exported music publishing, broadcasting, satellite television, and film and video distribution.
- 1985 – Branson starts Virgin Holidays
- 1987 – Branson takes Virgin Records to the United States
- 1987 – The Virgin Group, along with Granada, Anglia and Pearson, founds British Satellite Broadcasting and receives a UK licence to broadcast five new TV channels by satellite in the UK.
- 1987 – Virgin sets up 525, a post production facility in Los Angeles, to work on high-end commercials and pop videos.
- 1987 – Virgin sets up "Music Box" as an independent producer of music programmes.
- 1987 – Virgin buys a 45% stake in Mastertronic Group. Later Virgin Mastertronic becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Virgin Group, creating, marketing and distributing computer games software and Sega consoles in several European countries.
- 1987 – Virgin buys Rushes Postproduction in London.
- 1987 – Virgin launches Virgin Airship & Balloon Company.
- 1987 – Richard Branson launched Mates condoms in the UK to promote condoms to young adults
- 1988 – Virgin re-opens the recently acquired and re-modeled Olympic Studios in Barnes, London.
- 1988 – Virgin launches Virgin Classics, another Virgin international record label specializing in high-quality classical music.
- 1988 – Virgin sells some of its smaller UK retail stores and puts more money into Virgin Megastores, opening new stores both in the UK and abroad.
- 1988 – Virgin sets up Virgin Broadcasting.[citation needed]
- 1988 – Virgin sells its shareholding in British Satellite Broadcasting.[citation needed]
1990s
[edit]- 1990 – Virgin arrives in Japan[citation needed]
- 1991 – Virgin Publishing (Virgin Books) is formed[citation needed]
- 1992 – Virgin Records is sold to Thorn EMI[4]
- 1993 - Virgin Vision is bought by PolyGram for $5.6 million[5]
- 1993 – Virgin Radio hits the airwaves with Virgin 1215AM[6]
- 1994 – Launch of Virgin Vodka and Virgin Cola[citation needed]
- 1995 - Discretely invests in AirTicketsDirect
- 1995 – Virgin Direct Personal Financial Services opens for business
- 1995 – Virgin Express a European low cost Airline is launched in Brussels after the purchase and rebranding of EBA Express
- 1996 – V2 Music is created[citation needed]
- 1996 – Virgin.Net launches[citation needed]
- 1996 – Virgin Brides launches[7]
- 1996 – Virgin Group becomes majority shareholders in London Broncos rugby league team
- 1997 – Virgin CrossCountry and Virgin Trains West Coast commence operations[8][9]
- 1997 – Majority shareholding in Virgin Radio is sold to Chris Evans[10]
- 1997 – Virgin Cosmetics launches
- 1998 – 49% stake in Virgin Rail Group sold to Stagecoach Group[11]
- 1999 – Virgin Mobile launches Virgin's first telecoms venture
- 1999 – Virgin Active Launches in South Africa, UK and Italy
- 1999 – Majority shareholding in London Broncos is sold to David Hughes[12]
- 1999 – 49% shareholding in Virgin Atlantic sold to Singapore Airlines[13]
2000s
[edit]- 2000 – Virgin launches Australian airline Virgin Blue (now called Virgin Australia)[14]
- 2000 – Virgin sells Rushes Postproduction to Ascent Media – then Liberty Livewire
- 2000 – Virgin launches Virgin Energy
- 2000 – Virgin launches Virgin Cars
- 2002 - Virgin Interactive Espania SA splits from Virgin Interactive and re-brands as Virgin Play
- 2004 – Virgin launches Virgin Galactic
- 2005 – Virgin Express merges with Sn Brussels Airlines to form Brussels Airlines. Virgin retains minority share.
- 2005 – Virgin Active UK acquires Holmes Place
- 2006 – Virgin announces Virgin Fuel, a new company to produce a clean fuel in the future
- 2006 – Virgin Active Spain is Launched[citation needed]
- 2007 – Virgin Active Portugal is Launched[citation needed]
- 2007 – Virgin launches Virgin Health Bank
- 2007 – Virgin launches Virgin Media
- 2007 – Virgin launches Virgin America
- 2007 – Virgin buys 20% stakes in AirAsia X
- 2007 – Sells Virgin Megastore in the UK and Ireland to Zavvi[15]
- 2007 – Virgin Media Television Launches Virgin 1
- 2007 – Closes Virgin Digital in the UK (Virgin now sells music downloads through Virgin Media's website)
- 2007 – Virgin Fuel US$400 million in Virgin Atlantic jet flight on biofuels and in renewable energy.
- 2007 – Virgin Money becomes preferred bidder for acquisition of Northern Rock (and is eventually successful).
- 2007 – Virgin Radio Italia launches in Italy in joint venture with Finelco.
- 2007 – Virgin CrossCountry ceases after franchise lost to Arriva CrossCountry[16]
- 2008 – Virgin Australia Airlines offers competitive prices between Australia and Los Angeles. Known as V Australia due to naming rights.
- 2008 – Virgin launches Virgin Healthcare
- 2009 – Virgin launches Virgin Money Giving[citation needed]
2010s
[edit]- 2010 – Virgin launches Virgin Racing, a Formula One team previously known as Manor Grand Prix
- 2010 – Virgin launches Virgin Gaming, a service for people of all skill levels to play competitively on popular Video Games.[citation needed]
- 2010 – Virgin launches Virgin Produced, a film and television development, packaging and production company based in Los Angeles, California.
- 2010 – Virgin launches Project, a digital magazine created exclusively for Apple Inc's iPad.[citation needed]
- 2010 – Virgin Money buys Church House Trust
- 2012 – Virgin Money buys Northern Rock[17]
- 2012 – Virgin Galactic announces the development of orbital space launch system LauncherOne.[18]
- 2013 – Virgin Media sold to Liberty Global
- 2015 – Virgin Trains East Coast commences operating the InterCity East Coast franchise, Virgin Group hold a 10% shareholding[19]
- 2016 – Virgin launches Virgin Voyages; Virgin Radio Jakarta launches in May 2016, replacing Ninety Niners FM. The station was owned by MPG Media
- 2017 – Virgin invested in Hyperloop One; Branson joined its board of directors,[20] and in December 2017 became its chairman.[21]
- 2018 – Virgin invests in Brightline trains in Florida, USA. The system is briefly named Virgin Trains USA.
- 2018 – Virgin Trains East Coast ceases trading[22]
- 2019 - Virgin purchases Flybe through the consortium Connect Airways, Flybe is subsequently renamed Virgin Connect.
- 2019 - Virgin Trains West Coast ceases after InterCity West Coast franchise lost to Avanti West Coast[23]
- 2024 - Hyperloop One, formerly Virgin Hyperloop, defunct and sold assets. [24]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Richard Branson". Entrepreneur. 10 October 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2013.
- ^ Kensington Roof Gardens to close after more than 35 years The Guardian 3 January 2018
- ^ Dearlove, Des (13 Mar 2007). Business the Richard Branson Way: 10 Secrets of the World's Greatest Brand Builder (3 ed.). John Wiley & Sons. pp. 15. ISBN 9781841127668.
- ^ "Richard Branson Biography". Bio. Archived from the original on 15 April 2014. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
- ^ "Polygram's visionary deal". February 1993.
- ^ Hosking, Patrick (29 April 1993). "Branson takes to the airwaves: Hopes are high as Virgin Radio begins broadcasting". The Independent. London. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ "14 Virgin companies that even Richard Branson could not stop going bust". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-01-20.
- ^ Branson's Virgin Group wins CrossCountry Trains for 15 years Rail issue 294 18 December 1996 page 6
- ^ Virgin to tackle IC West Coast Rail Privatisation News issue 48 20 February 1997 page 1
- ^ "Chris Evans takes over at Virgin Radio". BBC News. London. 9 December 1997. Retrieved 24 Sep 2014.
- ^ Stagecoach to Acquire 49% Stake in Virgin Rail Today's Railways UK issue 32 August 1998 page 8
- ^ Hughes snaps up Broncos Evening Standard 17 September 2001
- ^ Branson sells 49% of Virgin Atlantic BBC News 20 December 1999
- ^ Virgin Blue To Fly The Aussie Skies Virgin Blue 5 February 2000
- ^ Branson sells Virgin music stores BBC News 17 September 2007
- ^ Shock as Virgin loses Cross Country to Arriva The Railway Magazine issue 1277 September 2007 page 11
- ^ "UKFI confirms completion of Northern Rock sale to Virgin Money" (PDF). UKFI. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ Amos, Jonathan (2012-07-11). "Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic to launch small satellites". BBC News. Retrieved 2012-07-13.
- ^ Stagecoach/Virgin bid wins East Coast franchise The Railway Magazine issue 1366 January 2015 page 6
- ^ "Hyperloop One Is Now 'Virgin Hyperloop One' Thanks to Richard Branson's Investment". Fortune. 2017-10-12.
- ^ "New Chairman, New Funding, & New Speed Records". Hyperloop One. Retrieved 2019-11-06.
- ^ Government terminates Virgin Trains East Coast franchise Railway Gazette International 17 May 2018
- ^ FirstGroup replaces Virgin to run West Coast route BBC News 14 August 2019
- ^ Hyperloop One Closes
External links
[edit]- Virgin Corporate Website
- virginbrand.com Unofficial blog of the Virgin Group
- International Rescue Corps
- Gonzo Way of Branding Fast Company magazine article on Sir Richard Branson
- Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI)
- International Ballooning Commission (CIA) notable flights
- Svenska Ballongfederationen, Pacific ocean flights
- Profile on BBC News dated September 27, 2004
- Mates History "Richard Branson launched Mates condoms in the UK in 1987 to promote condoms to young adults"
- Video Interview on CBC News: The Hour dated November 21, 2005
- AskMen.com feature on Richard Branson – includes pics, pictures, biography, video, related news, vital stats, and commentary.
