Learning From Sir Richard Branson

Here is what Sir Richard has to say:

1. On big companies vs. small companies

“Small is beautiful.” Sir Richard doesn’t see size as a competitive advantage.

His Virgin Records label is not the biggest in the music industry, but in 1992 it attracted the Rolling Stones. Virgin Airlines has a mere 37 airplanes versus the 700+ maintained by its competitors. It’s better to spin off a company into a second smaller company (as Virgin Atlantic spun off Virgin America) than grow larger, Sir Richard believes, because smaller companies can stay both more nimble and more customer-focused. They can also maintain the style and “cheekiness” of their early trailblazing if they stay relatively compact. Read more of this post