At Least One Intelligent Design

My appreciation for Sir Richard Branson started in my early teens.  I clearly remember the circumstances under which I was first introduced to this eccentric British "industrialist." Before the internet stepped up its game from a 56k dial-up modem, the day when the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition came out was a national holiday for a pubescent teenager.  I'd contend that it still is or at least should be for anyone interested in the female persuasion, but, uh, the internet has sapped some of the lusted from those glorious glossy pages.  Roughly ten years ago, Rebecca Romajn was on the cover, and Sports Illustrated had just started to introduce their tradition of "body painting," which for some reason allows them to paint naked women and pass them off as clothed women.  It's beyond me why an uncovered nipple painted to look like a bathing suit counts as being covered in the eyes of censors, but I admire their creativity.  This seminal edition was shot on the private island of Sir Richard Branson, the billionaire charman of Virgin, and they did a multiple-page spread on the man.  Needless to say, he had a new fan.  

I'm not saying that I've been following him that closely or that I have any idea about who he is personally.  However, I like the idea of him.  He has more money than anyone could ever need, so he does ridiculous things like trying to balloon far distances, ride fast boats, or start a space tourism business.  He's an integral part of what I would aspire to be if I had what Chris Rock would consider "wealth."  The other components are probably Warren Buffet and Mark Cuban, in that order, but that's a discussion for another day.  

What amazes me is that the man has had success across so many different arenas, ranging from music to cell phones to building a private island that is so awesome that Sports Illustrated has a shoot there (in general, he seems to have won).  Somehow, I doubt that it's because of an intricate knowledge of each of these industries.  It simply shows that he has "it," that knowledge of human nature that allows some people to succeed in any circumstance.  It's some combination of charisma, opportunism, and luck.  Generally, it means that they do just do stuff the right way.  Branson creates a product and an experience that people want.  After taking a flight on Virgin America from New York to San Francisco and then back on a red eye 48 hours later, I got a chance to see the beauty of it in person. It give me hope that everything could be made awesome.

It was flat out amazing, as transcontinental flights go.  It felt like flying in a club: there was mood lighting, TVs for each seat with satellite programming, sleekly designed everything, and attentive and attractive flight attendants.  They think of the little things, from witty copy on their website and baggage checks to the world's first entertaining safety video.  Somehow, they made flying more comfortable and, dare I say, somewhat sexy.  You know what?  It made me willing to fly Virgin again and a bit more willing to shell out a couple extra bucks for the experience.   Isn't that the goal of any business that sells an otherwise undifferentiated product?

So, if you can add value to a flight experience by making it a bit more sexy, doesn't that show that there's an opportunity to do it with everything?  Investing in items that are secondary to the product's primary function, like design and sex appeal, seem like a relatively minor investments in the grand scheme of things, but it makes a tremendous difference (my theory on one of the reasons people love Apple products...that's not a negative).   It's like people who spend millions on an ad campaign but have a shitty ad.  This, however, is not a shitty ad (pardon the pun), and if you can make fiber sexy, I'm convinced you can do it with anything.