RICHARD BRANSON TAKES US INTO ORBIT

©Etienne De Malglaive/Getty Images

©Etienne De Malglaive/Getty Images

Richard Branson is one of the most recognizable people on earth. The British serial entrepreneur, adventure junkie and philanthropist has reinvented corporate promotion and marketing over the years. He is reinventing business models and supporting some of the world's biggest issues.  

Branson's Virgin Group gave us multitudes of products, which are ranging from mobile phones to airplanes. Though over the past several years, he begun dipping his ambitious toes into different pools, all of which are aimed to cause major shifts in the world of travel. He opened the first of his branded hotels in Chicago last year and is planning to launch a cruise line in 2020. Above all, as early as next year, Virgin Galactic, the world’s first commercial spaceline, shall transport people into orbit. On the other side, he is a disputant against capital punishment, nuclear arms proliferation, anti-drug policies, and global warming, and has publicly supported humanitarian efforts on the African continent. 

Branson is a man committed to raising any bar he can wrap his hands around. Last April, Surface Magazin met with the 66-year-old Branson over drinks to discuss the future of travel, life’s successes and lead balloons, and his interest in taking us into orbit.