VIRGIN ATLANTIC AIRWAYS

Virgin Atlantic Airways



Virgin Atlantic Airways

Introduction

The man behind the creating of the world renowned London-based Virgin Group is Richard Branson. He is the chairman of the group and has parlayed an enduring respect for wisdom of conventional business into the world's most recognisable and powerful brand and international conglomerate worth of £ 1.8 billion.

Under the brand name of Virgin, Branson has invested into a wide array of businesses from financial services to wedding gowns; amongst which airlines are also included. The market giants have been rested off from their market share through these businesses. According to Branson,

“My original aim was to be an editor; I become a publisher and an entrepreneur by mistake” (Balmer, 2001, pp. 1-17).

A record mail order business was delivered in London by Virgin group in 1970.Soon after that the company started a recording studio which later became the leading British studio. The company started its expansion in 1980s and established Virgin Atlantic airways, Virgin Vision, Virgin Holidays and Virgin Cargo. The company floated in the London Stock Exchange, in 1986. Although, Virgin Atlantic Airways remained Virgin Voyager Group's privately owned part. Branson believed that ruling a public company is infringing his entrepreneurial style; therefore, he bought all the outstanding shares back. Virgin Music was sold to Thorn EMI in 1992, which allowed Branson to invest more money in the airline business (Virgin Atlantic). This paper aims to examine the Virgin Atlantic Airlines in detail, with emphasis on the marketing strength and the role of employees in building the brand's image.

Discussion

Virgin Atlantic Airways quickly established itself and started expansion in its operations to a number of locations including Boston, Orlando, Los Angeles, Miami and Tokyo in the late 1980s. A major hurdle which the airline faced initially was that it was not allowed to fly out the largest British airport Heathrow. However, after a few years of struggle it finally gained access to this airport. Later in 1994, Virgin Atlantic extended its reach to various other destinations including San Francisco and Hong Kong, while expanding its fleet simultaneously (Dowling, 1993, pp. 99-108). During the period of 2000-2001, the airline also started to offer flights to Delhi and Los Vegas. The three core products of Virgin Atlantic are Economy, Premium and Upper Class. Each of these classes has associations to different forms of products (Dowling, 2001, pp. 35-48).

Mission Statement

The mission of Virgin Atlantic Airways is

“To grow a profitable airline that people love to fly and where people love to work.”

Strategic Objective(s)

The objectives which an organization wants to achieve over the span of time may or may not include; return on investment, profitability, productivity, technological leadership, competitive position, public responsibility and employee relations development. The strategic objective of Virgin Atlantic as stated by its Regional Director Eric Starks is

“To maintain a safe customer environment through the necessary security procedures (Mosley, 2009, pp. 9-10).

Strategies

For a sustainable and profitable existence in the market Virgin Atlantics have always focused on its core ...