Portal:South East England/Selected biography/2

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Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950, Shamley Green, Surrey), sometimes abbreviated as SRB for "Sir Richard Branson", is an English entrepreneur, best known for his Virgin brand, a banner that encompasses a variety of business organisations. It is estimated that Branson is worth over £3 billion (equivalent to nearly US$6 billion) according to the Sunday Times Rich List 2006. On 12 October 2006, he emphasised his stated plan is to invest $3 billion of Virgin's profits over 10 years to fight global warming.

Branson started a record shop in Oxford Street in London and, shortly after, launched the record label Virgin Records with Nik Powell. Branson had gained enough profits from his record store to purchase a country estate, in which he installed a recording studio. He leased out studio time to fledgling artists, including multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield.