ROMULUS – What’s the secret to success for multi-billionaire
entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson? When he starts what has ballooned to 400
companies in his Virgin Group he always hires a great person to run the
day-to-day operations freeing him to explore new business and revenue
opportunities, he said Thursday during a news conference at Detroit
Metropolitan Airport.
The latest business opportunity for the flamboyant music
mogul turned international businessman and adventurer is a code share venture
with Delta Air Lines, the dominant carrier at Metro, for direct flights
from Detroit and London. Branson held court Thursday afternoon at the Westin Hotel
where he discussed his strategy to penetrate the US airline market and his business
philosophy that has generated him a net worth now in the neighborhood of $5
billion.
Seated next to him on stage was Craig Kreeger, CEO of Virgin
Atlantic Airways, who he commended for his operational expertise – one of the
secrets to Branson’s success, he said. Hiring good people to provide great
customer service is another, he said.
Also on hand to laud the new code share partnership was
Delta CEO Richard Anderson, Wayne County Executive Warren Evans, Detroit Mayor
Mike Duggan and Wayne County Airport Authority CEO Thomas Naughton.
Virgin Atlantic launched non-stop daily flights from Detroit
to London on June 1. It will be the only British airline to fly non-stop into
Detroit and will form part of Virgin Atlantic’s partnership with Delta. Virgin
Atlantic will operate the route on an A330-300, which offers 33 Upper Class, 38
Premium Economy and 185 Economy seats.
But when Branson touched down Thursday, he was on board a
Boeing 787-9 he dubbed “Dream Jeannie,” (loose reference to David Bowie song Jean Genie?) loaded with British press, and the
cast of Motown: The Musical, which recently announced it will open in London in
2016. Branson always does his thing with panache.
On Friday, Branson will host an event at the College for
Creative Studies where four of Detroit’s most exciting start-ups will pitch
live to him and a panel of some of Detroit’s most brilliant minds, the press
release says. Branson also will take a bike tour of Detroit led by Slow Roll
founder Jason Hall and host an event at The Fillmore. He even will throw out
the first pitch Friday night when the Detroit Tigers play host to the Cleveland
Indians at Comerica Park.
During the press conference, one of the reporters mentioned
that Virgin recently announced plans to build a Virgin Hotel in Chicago. And
would he be interested in opening one in Detroit? Branson responded by saying
he had not been to Detroit in many years, but would be interested in scouting
for possible hotel locations. Evans quickly added that he has a half finished
jail site that is available, evoking laughter from the packed room.
A recent report said two years after construction was halted
because of ballooning expenses, the failed Wayne County jail project is still
costing taxpayers more than $1 million a month. Sounds like a distress sale
that Virgin could pick up for a song.
It was the music business that launched Branson into his business career at the
age of sixteen, when he published a magazine called Student. He interviewed popular artists like
Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones, and advertised their records. Student became
his first big success. In 1970, he set up a mail-order record business.
In 1972, he opened a chain of record stores, Virgin Records, later known as
Virgin Megastores. Branson’s Virgin brand grew rapidly during the 1980s, as he
set up Virgin Atlantic and expanded the Virgin Records Music label, which he
was eventually forced to sell to EMI to help save his airline.
Oh, and the name Virgin? It was suggested by one of Branson’s early employees
because they were all new at business. Sir Richard, after nearly a half century as a serial entrepreneur, is no longer a virgin in business, but one of the best.
Mike Brennan is Editor and Publisher
of MITechNews.Com, which chronicles the people and companies that drive the
technology business in Michigan. If you have a story idea for Mike, email him
