Today’s lesson from Richard Branson is expand your services to places you are already servicing.  One of his many airlines flys to several cities where they want to develoop hip urban upscale hotels.  Look at what add-on services you can add to what you already have.

Virgin Group is set to launch a new urban hotel brand in the next three months, according to Marketing Week.

Jackie McQuillan spokeswoman for the Virgin Group said it was “very much in the development stage” and will be an “urban hotel concept”.

Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson has said he would like to develop a hotel brand based on Starwood’s W hotel, “urban townhouse properties, halfway between a hotel and a private club”.

It has been suggested that the first properties will be in New York, London and Los Angeles, all served by the company’s airline Virgin Atlantic.

Virgin Group to launch urban hotel brand

What virgins and carbon scrubbers have in common is Richard Branson.  Here are a select few articles about Richard Branson in the last week and what you can learn from them.

The case study is very interesting and you’ll learn alot about business.  The carbon scrubber’s article is a good step toward getting carbon dioxide out of the air.  Richard Branson is helping a lot sponsoring this $25 million contest.  Virgin Radio was sold and the new owners don’t get the name Virgin, just the radio station.  Branson’s brand name of Virgin is so special that it is never for sale, an important lesson.

And my much loved airlines Silverjet went out of business.  Nan and I flew on them last year to London.  They were fantastic.  Fantastic service, great boarding lounge and business class seating on the entire jet.  Traveling business class was divine.  Richard Branson thinks business-only airlines are not viable.  With Silverjet and a few others going out of business maybe Richard Branson is correct.  I hope not, we have tickets on another business-class only airline Le Avion to Paris in 20 days.

Richard Branson : Virgin Group of Companies Case Study
By Antonio Jr Fabe
Business case study of the Virgin Group of Companies, which are being managed and owned by Richard Branson.

Carbon scrubber’ breakthrough
Nature.com (subscription) – London,England,UK
Last year Richard Branson and Al Gore offered $25 million for any invention that can remove ‘significant’ amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. …

Farewell Virgin Radio, hello…. what exactly?
guardian.co.uk – UK
Except not for much longer, after the national music station was bought by the Times of India Group and Richard Branson took his Virgin brand back. …

And another one gone: Silverjet ceases operations
… and oil prices continuing to rise, surely only die-hard risk takers will be willing to invest in a business-class-only airline right now. Is it time to say Sir Richard Branson called it right on business-only airlines?

With American Airlines making a major customer service mistake that with this current airline environment could spell the end of the airline and with fuel costs a well run company like Virgin America can do very well in the USA.

When the economy for an industry is growing companies that are well run can stay in business, but when the economy gets hard a ton of companies will go out of business.  Well run companies will last, poorly run companies will go out of business.

The weak American economy will force more U.S. airlines, including a major carrier, into bankruptcy within 18 months, Virgin Atlantic Airways chief Richard Branson said Thursday.

Fuel costs, up 70% from last year, are likely to remain high, the British entrepreneur said in a meeting with reporters here. Facing a recession, airlines wont be able to charge enough for tickets to make up that expense, he said.

Branson declined to say which airlines he thinks are likely to wind up in Chapter 11.

In recent weeks, several small airlines, including Aloha Airlines Inc., ATA Airlines and Champion Air, a charter carrier, have abruptly stopped service.

Failing airlines will benefit competitors, Branson said. For example, it will be easier for Virgin to acquire new aircraft, which currently are in short supply.

Virgins Branson Sees More US Airline Bankruptcies Ahead

Richard Branson is at it again. I’m surprised he hadn’t done this before.

Some 25 years after the entrepreneur chartered a private jet to fly 50 passengers and himself from the Beef Island, Tortola airport to Puerto Rico after their original flight was cancelled, Branson will launch on Tuesday Virgin Charter, an online service to charter private aircraft.

Branson said the new business will court the approximate $30 billion (15 billion pounds) market for booking private air travel by letting operators market availability and allowing customers to bid and book online.

Branson’s online charter plane service launches – International Herald Tribune

Virgin Charter.com

Richard Branson’s new biofuel plane apparently has algae in part of the secret biofuel recipe.  It will fly today.

This is a great moment because it is the first time in history that air transportation and alternative fuel are being shown as commercially viable.

This morning Virgin Atlantic and its suppliers Boeing and GE will stage a test flight of the world’s first commercial biofuel plane.One of the airline’s top pilots, Captain Geoff Andreason, Virgin Atlantic’s chief Boeing pilot, will fly his plane from Heathrow to Amsterdam. It is a one-and-a-half hour flight and the assembled company watches on big screens as the plane takes off and lands.

One of the plane’s four engines will be run on a composite fuel, which is 75 per cent standard aviation fuel and 25 per cent a secret biofuel recipe.

Algae are fuelling Branson’s maiden flight – Telegraph

Are you interested in going to outer space? Richard Branson reveals the design of the mother and space ships.

The audience heard how around 80 of Virgin Galactic’s Founder customers had joined us on a series of G-Force training days at the NASTAR centrifuge facility in Philadelphia and how in those two days, each of them experienced something normally the sole preserve of fast jet pilots and astronauts. He explained how 50 of our specially-appointed Accredited Space Travel Agents had also successfully completed this training and that NASTAR will shortly be opening the experience to the general public. The Centrifuge Training film showed Richard, his son Sam and many of our customers demonstrating the excitement felt when experiencing G forces and allowed the audience to share their exhilaration. Stephen noted that Virgin Galactic achieved a 93% success rate with these activities, which was 10-15% higher than our original business plan projections.

‘Our youngest centrifuge rider was Sam Branson at 22, and our oldest was Professor James Lovelock at 88 – as far as we know, the youngest and the oldest individuals to have sustained high G’s’.

‘Overall, we proved conclusively that ordinary people can go to space and that, actually, almost all of us have the right stuff’.

Virgin’s brand is unique in the world.  Virgin has so many companies (350+ right now) and they span a very broad range of categories that there really is nothing that Richard Branson wouldn’t do with some exceptions.

So what does ‘entrepreneurial branding’ mean? Entrepreneurial branding is about being: hands-on, holistic (looking at and trying various branding techniques, not just one), taking responsibility for lots of things, being really open-minded, understanding the overall business you work in as well as affiliated businesses, and so on. Of course, most branding jobs would require these skills / attitudes / approaches, and, yet, certainly, the bigger the organization you work in, the more you have to work on other things i.e being an expert in your job role, focusing on thorough success in your job role, and so on … the focus being on ‘your job role’ in the sense that the scope to do other things isn’t so great (compared to a smaller organization) and you will be judged more on ‘your job role’ than what you do outside it (however, it is rarely quite as black and white as this).

If you want a role model for ‘entreprenurial branding’ it is Richard Branson: lots of open-mindedness, ideas, trying-new-things, advertising, pr, publicity, taking responsibility for lots of things – and so on. In today’s world where advertising is becoming so much more complicated, where digital and traditional advertising are merging, and so on, it is even more important than ever for people looking for jobs in this industry to have this entrepreneurial branding approach.

Entrepeneurial Branding | Spotlight Ideas

Most everyone knows that Richard Branson is doing very well.  As the founder of Virgin which owns over 350 different companies and his famous Necker Island, he’s one of the most wealthy men in the world.

But did you know that his parents had to remortage their home back in the early 70’s so their son wouldn’t go to jail?

Most people use remortgages for home improvements, consolidating debt, perhaps a special purchase, or even that once-in-a-lifetime holiday. However, Eve and Ted Branson put their home on the line and mortgaged themselves to the hilt to save their 20-year-old son from a possible spell in prison. The money they raised was paid directly to HM Customs & Excise to cover unpaid duty and fines due because their son, Richard Branson, had been selling records in the UK that were approved only for export.

His parents’ financial intervention allowed Branson to settle out of court, and so not only saved him a fortune in court costs, but saved him from the possibility of being jailed. How many people wouldn’t bat an eyelid and instantly remortgage their substantial home in order to save their wayward son from prison is open to debate. However, the Bransons had no such qualms and their faith in their son has since been repaid in droves. Not only did he pay them back in full, but he went on to establish a hugely successful business empire that has made him a multi-billionaire.

The World’s most profitable remortgage?

Apparently there is a lot of stories about the economy in the USA is slowing down and prosperity is disappearing.  I say Apparently because I don’t watch the negative news, I focus on the positive and look for opportunity everywhere.

This morning I’m reading my email and I have three tips in my inbox.  All three show that prosperity and opportunity is abound.

Green By The Numbers show statistics that green related fields are very economically viable and growing in the future.   After decades of almost no growth the green industry is growing.

• In 2002, the solar industry market was worth $200 million dollars. In 2007, the estimated worth of the solar industry market was $2 billion dollars.
• In 2005, the environmental industry created more than 5.3 million jobs in the US. Ten times more than the number of jobs created by the US pharmaceutical industry.
• By 2030, the renewable energy and energy efficiency industries could create 40 million new jobs in the US.
• In Europe, a 20 percent increase in energy efficiency is estimated to create a million new jobs.
• Typically, green collar jobs pay four dollars more than the living wage standard, provide health benefits, meaningful work, and occupational mobility.

Branson Takes to GreenRoad shows that new products are coming out that are fully centered on green and tech.

Clean-tech investors Benchmark Capital and Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Green Fund are wagering that rating a driver’s performance can offer a profitable path to improved fuel economy and reduced accidents and carbon dioxide emissions.

Branson To Start Virgin Russia also shows that traditional business still has room to grow within the world.  This time to Russia where they really need a decent airline.

Billionaire Richard Branson has announced plans to start an airline in Russia, tentatively called Virgin Russia. He plans to take advantage of the oil-fueled Russian economy, which has given the average Russian more money (and an airline market that’s growing at around 10 percent a year). “We hope to offer the Russian people a really good airline. We may be able to do it a little better than is being done at the moment,” said Branson. “We’re in discussion with two or three partners.” Branson also noted that there are “150 million people here within a three-hour flight from Moscow.”

So see opportunity everywhere.  See your prosperity growing.  Look for opportunity.  Seize the day and do it.

Richard Branson’s ideas just never stop.  Now Virgin is looking into exploring the oceans.  Since only 95% of them are explored this is a good idea.  Wondering how Branson and other people like hiim do this?  Branson’s idea recording techniques is in my book Play Prosperity Games.

HE’S crossed the Atlantic in a balloon, the English Channel by amphibious car and will soon leave earth’s orbit in his private spaceship.

And for his next trip, Sir Richard Branson is voyaging to the bottom of the sea.

Like a real Captain Nemo, he has secret plans to build a submarine capable of exploring the lowest depths of the oceans. The idea is said to have been that of his friend Steve Fossett, the American adventurer missing since his plane disappeared over the Nevada desert in September.

Captain Richard Branson voyaging to the bottom of the sea – Times Online

My friend Bob emailed me article link late last night. Bob knows I’m a fan of Richard Branson. 2008 will be the year of commercial space flight. You see new business models are being created all the time. Richard Branson sold Virgin Megastores in the UK and has moved on to space flight and alternative fuels. He goes with the flow.

Future thrill-seekers will ride a sleek spacecraft berthed under a massive, twin-boom mothership to the fringe of space in a design unveiled Wednesday by Virgin Galactic.The SpaceShipTwo spacecraft and its WhiteKnightTwo carrier will begin initial tests this summer to shakedown the novel spaceflight system designed by aerospace pioneer Burt Rutan and his firm Scaled Composites.

Virgin Galactic Unveils Suborbital Spaceliner Design – Yahoo! News

If you have a good article let me email tip@abundanceunlimited.com.

Richard Branson is a role model for me and my businesses.  Now he is one for social responsibility.  He is showing that business can be leaders in helping social and environmental causes.

Branson has garnered attention of late for his efforts to make the Virgin Group more socially responsible. In addition to creating socially conscious investment vehicles, Branson’s company has pledged to take all the money from its airline and railway businesses to finance and develop alternative fuels. Now comes word from the International Herald Tribune that Virgin Atlantic will conduct the first ever airborne test of a renewable fuel by a commercial jet.

Socially Responsible Business Forum » Blog Archive » Richard Branson, Virgin Leading The Way In Social Entreprenuership

Richard Branson is amazing in that he is applying entreprenuer skills to the environment.  Instead of the usual hugging the tree and protesting which doesn’t work very well at all.

Virgin Atlantic said Monday it would fly one of its Boeing 747 planes on biofuel during a demonstration flight from London to Amsterdam next month.

Virgin Atlantic Chairman Richard Branson said the test flight, which he called the first of its kind, would yield crucial information on how to reduce aviation’s carbon footprint.

Virgin Atlantic to run 747 on biofuel

After Richard Branson tell Virgin Atlantic staff that their planned strike over their pay raise of nearly 5% was not enough he told them that they should seek employment elsewhere in order to afford the lifestyle they want.  Well he plain frank tactic worked.

Strikes planned by Virgin Atlantic cabin crew have been called off after a deal was agreed on pay, it has been announced.

Thousands of members of the Unite union were due to stage two 48 hour walkouts from Wednesday and again from January 16 after rejecting a two-year wage deal worth 4.8% in year one and the rate of inflation in year two.

Last ditch talks produced a deal, which Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson described as a “triumph of common-sense.”

The Press Association: Virgin Atlantic strikes called off

Open source software is changing the cost of information technology.   Virgin America the newest airline from Richard Branson is saving millions with open source software.

Maguire estimates that his department has saved the company nearly $6 million in licensing fees and ongoing maintenance fees since he first began setting it up about 18 months ago. His annual IT budget is probably nearly 20 percent less than it would be with off-the-shelf software. And that’s not even including the reduced headcount because, as he said, “I don’t have a big Oracle ERP application that requires full-time application staff, DBAs, and programmers.”

But the real bottom line is, is it working? “The good news is we are flying planes every day and everything is working,” said Maguire. He acknowledged that in the world of airline IT, the way he built his IT department is fairly unique, but he added, “the best [proof] is how well it’s working for the company.”

Mid-Market Heroes: Linux and Outsourcing Help Virgin America Soar | Hardware & Software | bMighty.com

Richard Branson along with Peter Gabriel started The Elders. A great idea. They are people the world trust and are free from politica, military and economic pressures.

We are moving to a global village and yet we don’t have our global elders. The Elders could be a group who have the trust of the world, who can speak freely, be fiercely independent, and respond fast and flexibly in conflict situations.

The Elders :: theElders.org

Some times when your employees ask for more than you can afford to profitably run your business you have to put your foot down. Richard Branson just did that with Virgin Atlantic staff as they threaten to strike. The bottom line comes first. Richard Branson is well know to treat staff very very well but he can’t if their demands hurt the financial ability of the company.

Sir Richard Branson has told Virgin Atlantic staff who are not happy with the airline’s pay deal they should consider working at rival British Airways.

In a letter to staff who are threatening to strike, he ruled out any late offer to improve on a pay deal worth 8.3 per cent over two years.

Unite union members have vowed to hold two 48-hour strikes during January, scheduled for the 9th to 10th and 16th to 17th.

In his letter, Sir Richard said: “For some of you, more pay than Virgin Atlantic can afford may be critical to your lifestyle and if that is the case you should consider working elsewhere.”

Richard Branson: If pay deal isn’t enough, quit – Telegraph

Here is one out of 10 questions that Time magazine asked Richard Branson. Very revealing. Click the link below to see all 10 questions and answers

You own an airline. Isn’t it hypocritical to be preaching about global warming? —Mandy Johnson, Des Moines, Iowa
I could sell the airline and those planes would carry on damaging the environment, or I could pledge 100% of the profits—which I have done—to developing clean fuels. Next year we plan to fly one of our 747s using a clean fuel to prove it can be done.

10 Questions for Richard Branson – TIME

Here is some great advice about leadership.

The renowned entrepreneur behind the Virgin empire, Richard Branson, once said: “Lavish praise on people, and they flourish; criticize, and they shrivel up.” Branson suggests that praise is the key to success in all his relationships, whether as a boss or a father. Showing appreciation and expressing sincere praise is the easiest way to establish a connection with another person.Jim Thompson, executive director of the national nonprofit Positive Coaching Alliance, once told me he turns staff meetings into celebrations. Each meeting begins with 15 minutes of “appreciations and triumphs.” It’s an opportunity for employees to publicly recognize someone else at the meeting. One person might acknowledge a colleague who stayed late to help assemble material for a presentation or who made a last-minute trip to conduct a new pitch. The average person feels under-appreciated, says Thompson. “But in an environment where people are noticed for good things—or even for taking their best shot if they fail—they’re more likely to be fired up.”

Oprah’s Favorite ‘Favorite Thing’

A great introduction to Richard Branson the biggest serial entrepreneur in the world.