During a recent interview on ITV’s This Morning, entrepreneur Richard Branson revealed one of his biggest business mistakes involving his brand Virgin Cola. The cola drink was launched in 1994 and initially performed well, even outselling Coca-Cola in some stores. However, after a PR stunt that involved a tank crushing a pile of Coke and Pepsi cans in New York, the brand eventually came to an end.
Branson admitted that the mistake with Virgin Cola taught him the importance of putting purpose at the heart of a business and ensuring differentiation when taking on larger competitors. He emphasized the need to be significantly better than the competition, which was not the case with Virgin Cola. The discontinuation of the brand led to lessons learned about business strategy and product differentiation.
In addition to discussing his failed attempt with Virgin Cola, Branson shared his motto of “S*** it, let’s do it,” highlighting his willingness to try new things and not be afraid of failure. He explained that his approach to business involves taking on outrageous ideas and being open to experimentation and learning. Branson emphasized the importance of having fun while trying new ventures and continuously learning from both successes and failures.
Overall, Branson’s experience with Virgin Cola taught him valuable lessons about business strategy and product differentiation that he has applied in other areas of his career. His willingness to take risks and embrace failure has been instrumental in his success as an entrepreneur.
