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Richard Branson
Travels From TRAVELS FROM
United Kingdom
Speaker Fee Range SPEAKING FEE RANGE ** Please note that while this speaker’s specific speaking fee falls within the range posted above (for Continental U.S. based events), fees are subject to change. For current fee information or international event fees (which are generally 50-75% more than U.S based event fees), please contact us.
$75,000 and above
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PROFILE
Richard Branson
Travels From TRAVELS FROM
United Kingdom
Travels From SPEAKING FEE RANGE*
$75,000 and above
Email Core Agency Book Richard Branson
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  • As one of the world’s most well-known self-made billionaires, Richard Branson built his Virgin brand to more than 400 companies by looking for not listening to the so-called experts and challenging the status quo.
  • Richard Branson’s penchant for taking risks is epitomized in his non-traditional business ventures and colorful, adventurous life that has escaped death several times.
  • An entrepreneur since age 16, billionaire Richard Branson knows the keys to success in business and life: take risks, take the experts in stride, test the status quo, invest in those around, and have fun.

Never a great student, he was told by his headmaster that he would either end up in prison or become a millionaire. That headmaster may have missed by millions of dollars, but billionaire Richard Branson has spent his life looking for opportunities and challenging the status quo. He is best known as the founder of the Virgin Group, which contained more than 400 companies at its peak.

 

Born in Surrey, England, Branson struggled with dyslexia and dropped out of school when he was 16. His entrepreneurial streak showed early when he launched his first business venture—a magazine—and by 22, he had opened Virgin Records, a chain of record stores. The Virgin label was known for signing controversial bands like the Sex Pistols that other companies weren’t willing to sign. The Virgin brand grew rapidly during the 1980s with the creation of Virgin Atlantic Airlines and the expansion of the Virgin Records music label. He sold the label in 1992 for $1 billion.

 

Branson’s Virgin group of companies has included dozens of business ventures—the financial services firm Virgin Money; Virgin Airways, which operates in the U.K., U.S. and Australia; and Virgin Mobile, which began in 1999. He plans to launch Virgin Cruises in 2020. Branson's newest venture is Virgin Fuels, created to offer cheaper, more environmentally friendly fuel for automobiles and aircraft. In 2006, he pledged to invest the profits of Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Trains—estimated to be about $3 billion—to research for environmentally friendly fuels.

 

One of his best-known projects—the private spaceflight company Virgin Galactic—experienced a horrible accident in October 2014 when one of its spaceships exploded, killing one test pilot and injuring another. Branson continues to develop rocket-powered planes with the dream of one day transporting wealthy tourists to space.

 

Always looking for ways to quench his adventurous and competitive spirit, in 1991, Branson flew a hot air balloon 6,700 miles across the Pacific Ocean from Japan to Canada. This broke the world record at a speed of 245 miles per hour. Branson is the author of four books: Like a Virgin, Losing My Virginity: How I′ve Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way, Business Stripped Bare: Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur and Business the Richard Branson Way: 10 Secrets of the World′s Greatest Brand Builder.

 

In 1999, he became a founding sponsor of the International Centre for Missing & Exploited Children (ICMEC), which helps find missing children. In March 2000, Branson was knighted by Queen Elizabeth for "services to entrepreneurship,” and in 2007, he was ranked in Time Magazine’s “Top 100 Most Influential People in the World.” Forbes listed Branson's estimated net worth at $5.2 billion in July 2015.

VIDEOS
PROGRAMS

Richard Branson's keynotes are a reflection of his passion and drive. Through his Virgin brand, made up of several hundred businesses, Branson has established himself as one of the most innovative and risk-taking leaders in business today. Although now one of the richest billionaires in the world, Branson started Virgin from the ground up, learning many valuable lessons along the way. During his presentations, in which he often sits to give them a "fireside chat" kind of feel, Branson shares key entrepreneurial insights such as: what makes a good manager versus a great leader, how he spots a great leader, why it's about the team more than just the leader, how to embrace failure, and how and why Virgin chooses to inspire-rather than belittle-its competitors. He shares authentically about his decisions, struggles and successes, and encourages his audience to incorporate a little fun into their business.

A Fireside Chat: Screw Business as Usual – How to Have Fun, Do Good and Make Money

In this personal and approachable fireside chat-like forum, Branson shares what he learned and chronicled in his book Screw Business as Usual. As he started one exciting business after another, he thought life and work couldn’t get any better. But then he realized it’s really been a practice run, getting him ready to solve some of the greatest challenges our world is facing in a new and entrepreneurial way. He encourages audiences by talking about the opportunities that are arising as work and purpose merge.

In Screw Business as Usual, Branson reveals his innovative vision for the future to redefine capitalism from a profit focus to focusing on people, communities and the planet. One of the most successful businessmen in history shares how it is in the best interest of corporations to include the interests of their customers and communities, and it is no longer counterintuitive for businesses to be compassionate.

A Fireside Chat: Business Stripped Bare – Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur

Branson takes the audience on an insider journey of Branson entrepreneurship. Referencing his book Business Stripped Bare, Branson shares his story of unprecedented entrepreneurship and reveals the incredible truth about his most risky, brilliant and audacious deals. Audiences will discover why Virgin tried to take on one of the world's biggest superbrands and how Virgin Mobile USA holds the record as the fastest company (faster than Microsoft, Google and Amazon) to generate revenues of more than $1 billion. They also will hear about how Branson is the only person in the world to have succeeded in building eight billion-dollar companies.

Combining wise advice with candid and entertaining stories of Virgin's greatest achievements and setbacks, Branson inspires audiences with his unique thoughts on how to have success in business and in life. Whether you’re an executive or entrepreneur, Branson strips business down to its core and chronicles the steps it takes to succeed.

A Fireside Chat: Screw It, Let’s Do It – 14 Lessons on Making It to the Top While Having Fun and Staying Green

Branson refers to his book Screw It, Let's Do It to share the secrets of his success because he hopes they will inspire the audience to achieve more than their individual goals. Branson says that everyone has a responsibility to do no harm to their part of the world, and thus, the larger planet. In this talk, he draws on Gaia Capitalism to show why we need to take stock of how we may be damaging the environment, and why it is up to big companies like Virgin to lead the way in a more holistic approach to business.

In this talk, Branson will explain how he is taking his business and inspirations to the next level in some of the most crucial areas, such as launching Virgin Fuels. In keeping with his happy-go-lucky attitude, he balances that message by reminding audiences to “have fun with it,” or as one of his favorite quotes says: “The brave may not live forever – but the cautious do not live at all!”

A Fireside Chat: Losing My Virginity – How I’ve Survived, Had Fun and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way

Branson’s book Losing My Virginity tells the story of one of the most audacious and genius business minds of our time. He begins by telling how he landed on the name of his business—Virgin—which refers to the amount of business experience he had at that time. Branson has re-written the rulebook for success by creating a group of companies with a global presence, no central headquarters or management hierarchy, and minimal bureaucracy. In this fireside chat, Branson describes how and why many of his companies were started. He talks about how being too big can actually be the reason a business fails. Branson also tells the story of how he capitalized on his company’s flexibility to improve on existing big businesses even when the “experts” told him not to do it. In typical Branson style, he found golden opportunities in markets where customers had been slighted or underserved, where confusion reigned, or where the competition was complacent.

Branson represents the new businessman—a free-thinking, daring, and hardworking entrepreneur who lives life to the fullest. This talk is full of colorful stories from Branson’s life, including:

  • Crash-landing his hot-air balloon in the Algerian desert, yet remaining determined to be the first to circle the globe
  • Signing the Sex Pistols, Janet Jackson, the Rolling Stones, Boy George, and Phil Collins
  • Fighting back when British Airways took on Virgin Atlantic, and successfully suing a pillar of the British business establishment
  • Swimming two miles to safety during a violent storm off the coast of Mexico
  • Selling Virgin Records to save Virgin Atlantic
  • Staging a rescue flight into Baghdad before the start of the Gulf War

BEST-SELLING BOOKS

like_a_virgin

It’s business school, the Branson way.

Whether you’re interested in starting your own business, improving your leadership skills, or simply looking for inspiration from one of the greatest entrepreneurs of our time, Richard Branson has the answers.

Like a Virginbrings together some of his best advice, distilling the experiences and insights that have made him one of the world’s most recognized and respected business leaders.

In his trademark thoughtful and encouraging voice, Branson shares his knowledge like a close friend. He’ll teach you how to be more innovative, how to lead by listening, how to enjoy your work, and much more.

In hindsight, Branson is thankful he never went to business school. Had he conformed to the conventional dos and don’ts of starting a business, would there have been a Virgin Records? A Virgin Atlantic? So many of Branson’s achievements are due to his unyielding determination to break the rules and rewrite them himself. Here’s how he does it.


Losing My Virginity: How I′ve Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way
"Oh, screw it, let′s do it."

That′s the philosophy that has allowed Richard Branson, in slightly more than twenty-five years, to spawn so many successful ventures. From the airline business (Virgin Atlantic Airways), to music (Virgin Records and V2), to cola (Virgin Cola), to retail (Virgin Megastores), and nearly a hundred others, ranging from financial services to bridal wear, Branson has a track record second to none.

Losing My Virginityis the unusual, frequently outrageous autobiography of one of the great business geniuses of our time. When Richard Branson started his first business, he and his friends decided that "since we′re complete virgins at business, let′s call it just that: Virgin." Since then, Branson has written his own "rules" for success, creating a group of companies with a global presence, but no central headquarters, no management hierarchy, and minimal bureaucracy.

Many of Richard Branson′s companies—airlines, retailing, and cola are good examples—were started in the face of entrenched competition. The experts said, "Don′t do it." But Branson found golden opportunities in markets in which customers have been ripped off or underserved, where confusion reigns, and the competition is complacent.

And in this stressed-out, overworked age, Richard Branson gives us a new model: a dynamic, hardworking, successful entrepreneur who lives life to the fullest. Family, friends, fun, and adventure are equally important as business in Branson′s life. Losing My Virginityis a portrait of a productive, sane, balanced life, filled with rich and colorful stories:

    • Crash-landing his hot-air balloon in the Algerian desert, yet remaining determined to have another go at being the first to circle the globe
    • Signing the Sex Pistols, Janet Jackson, the Rolling Stones, Boy George, and Phil Collins
    • Fighting back when British Airways took on Virgin Atlantic and successfully suing this pillar of the British business establishment
    • Swimming two miles to safety during a violent storm off the coast of Mexico
    • Selling Virgin Records to save Virgin Atlantic
    • Staging a rescue flight into Baghdad before the start of the Gulf War

And much more. Losing My Virginity is the ultimate tale of personal and business survival from a man who combines the business prowess of Bill Gates and the promotional instincts of P. T. Barnum.


Business Stripped Bare: Adventures of a Global Entrepreneur
Sir Richard Branson is one of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs and his Virgin Group is one of the most recognized lifestyle brands, trusted and enjoyed by many millions of people.

Now, in his trademark charismatic and honest style, Richard shares the inside track on some of his greatest achievements in more than 40 years in business as well as the lessons he has learned from his setbacks. He discusses why he took on one of the world’s biggest superbrands; how he built Virgin Mobile USA into the fastest-growing company in history to reach a billion dollars in revenue—faster than Microsoft, Google, or Amazon.com; and how Richard is the only person in the world to have built seven billion-dollar companies from scratch in seven completely different sectors.

Richard tells the story behind the launch of Virgin America, his new airline, how Virgin Galactic is set to initiate a new era of space tourism from a spaceport deep in the Mojave desert, and what he has learned about business from a diverse group of leaders, including Nelson Mandela, Jack Welch, Herb Kelleher, Steve Jobs, and the founders of Google. He also shares his thoughts on the changing face of the global economy and how businesses worldwide need to work together to tackle environmental challenges and invest in the future of our world.

Combining invaluable advice with remarkable and candid inside stories, this is a dynamic, inspirational, and truly original guide to success in business and in life.


Business the Richard Branson Way: 10 Secrets of the World′s Greatest Brand Builder
In many ways, Richard Branson and his company the Virgin Group are unique. In an era dominated by strategists, Branson is an opportunist with an uncanny knack of sniffing out great deals where others hesitate or fear to tread. Never before has a single brand been so successfully deployed across such a diverse range of goods and services. Branson is the ultimate brand builder.

So how does he do it? Now bought completely up to date for this new edition, Business the Richard Branson Way, not only reveals the secrets of Branson's remarkable success but also draws out the universal lessons and identifies strategies that can be applied to any business or career. From picking on someone bigger than you to moving faster than a speeding bullet, and from making work fun to keeping the common touch, you have in your hands the secrets of phenomenal success.

Contents

    • Richard Branson Revisited
    • The Life and Times of Richard Branson
    • One Pick on Someone Bigger Than You
    • Two Do the Hippy, Hippy Shake
    • Three Haggle - Everything′s Negotiable
    • Four Make Work Fun
    • Five Do Right By Your Brand
    • Six Smile for the Cameras
    • Seven Don′t Lead Sheep, Herd Cats
    • Eight Faster than a Speeding Bullet
    • Nine Size Does Matter
    • Ten Never Lose the Common Touch
    • How to Build a Brand the Branson Way
    • Last Word

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