Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson, sometimes abbreviated as SRB for "Sir Richard Branson" (born 18 July 1950, Surrey), is an English entrepreneur, best known for his Virgin brand, a banner that encompasses a variety of business organizations. The name Virgin was chosen because a female friend involved in setting down the initial record shop commented "We're all virgins at business." It is estimated that Branson is worth over 3 billion GBP according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2006 ^*.

Life and career

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Sir Richard Branson was educated at Scaitcliffe School (now Bishopsgate School) until the age of 13, then he attended Stowe until he was 15 years old, and he began his entrepreneurial activities there by setting up Student Magazine. When he was 17, he opened a Student Advisory Centre, his first charity institution. Branson set up a record mail order business in 1970, started a record shop in Oxford Street, London shortly afterwards, and then in 1972 the record label Virgin Records with Nik Powell, opening a recording studio.

The company's first issue was multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield's Tubular Bells, which was to be a best-seller. Branson's company also courted controversy by signing bands like the Sex Pistols, whose contract more conventional companies had dispensed with. Virgin also introduced Culture Club to the music world. In the early 1980's he purchased the gay Nightclub Heaven. To keep his airline company afloat Branson sold the Virgin label to EMI in 1992, a more conservatively-minded company which had rescinded the contract of the Pistols. Branson is said to have wept when the sale was completed since the record business had been the genesis of the Virgin empire. He later formed V2 Records to re-enter the music business.

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