You can create a business, choose a name, but unless people know about it you're not going to sell any products.

Running a business is making a difference in people's lives

When I started Virgin from a basement in west London, there was no great plan or strategy. I didn't set out to build a business empire ... For me, building a business is all about doing something to be proud of, bringing talented people together and creating something that's going to make a real difference to other people's lives.

I want Virgin to be as well-known around the world as Coca-Cola.

Breaking the rules and challenging convention is in the DNA of every successful entrepreneur. Doing things differently and solving problems with new, innovative and fresh approaches are the very reason many start-ups are able to compete and sometimes outpace the established market leaders.

I suspect in most companies, the public relations person is down at No. 20 in the pecking order. But here, he is fighting incredibly important battles. If a negative story starts running away with itself in the press and is not dealt with fast, it can badly damage the brand, and so we put enormous weight on our PR people.

THE KEY TO GENERATING LOYALTY AND RISING ABOVE THE GENERAL NOISE SEEMS TO BE ALL ABOUT CREATING AN AUTHENTIC VOICE.