Like a Virgin

Q: Why were Virgin Blue aeroplanes painted red?

—Dick Percs, Australia

A: The name and the distinctive red planes were based on a play on words, but there is a lot more to the old Virgin Blue name than the colour, so let’s start this story at the beginning.

As I explained, we came up with the Virgin name one evening when discussing our new record shop idea.

We instantly loved it for many reasons, not least of which was that, even after the swinging sixties, the word was still somewhat risqué.

Virgin had a fresh, sexy feel to it; it declared that we were new to the music industry, and the business world in general. We excitedly scribbled it down with a big capital V – that scribble became the basis for the Virgin logo.

The original Virgin name turned out to be successful on many levels: It was unique, so it was instantly recognisable; it was memorable but not specific to one industry or region; and it was compatible with the brand that we would eventually build. We were lucky. These days, some entrepreneurs pay branding specialists a lot of money to create, test and refine a brand name and logo – but that’s no guarantee of a successful outcome. Any entrepreneur choosing a company name should think carefully about whether a proposed name is sufficiently versatile to be extended to future products and services. Virgin Records worked well in the entertainment industry, but we were not at all sure of ourselves in 1984, when we painted our company’s logo on the giant tailfin of Virgin Atlantic Airways’ one and only Boeing 747. It stood out – by that time we had chosen our distinctive shade of red.

Not everyone loved it. David Tait, one of the original group who set up the airline, gave me a tough time, declaring, ‘Nobody’s going to fly on an airline that won’t go all the way.’ But I dug in my heels and insisted it was better than ‘British Atlantic Airways’ – the original name of our start-up company – pointing out that the world really didn’t need another ‘BA’.

That fledgling airline became the foundation on which we built Virgin’s brand values and consolidated its international presence. Virgin Atlantic was soon a market leader because of its innovative approach, and because we provided great customer service and terrific value. Our distinctive marketing was always edgy, irreverent, self-deprecating and fun. As we said at the time, ‘with a name like Virgin you can’t take yourself too seriously’! In any case the word spread quickly and the airline’s success facilitated the launch of an extended family of other Virgin-branded companies all over the world.

Our unique name and brand, along with a consistent execution across every trading unit, made the company a success. As we introduced the various businesses that followed, we ensured that Virgin always represented added value, improved service and a fresh approach, from Virgin Money to Virgin Galactic. We knew, as did our customers and competitors, exactly what we stood for.

So, finally, let’s get back to the story behind the name Virgin Blue. In the 1850s, a large influx of immigrants arrived in Australia, hoping to make their fortunes in the gold fields. The Irish, many of whom were redheads, soon gained a reputation as hard drinkers and fighters. A fight, in local slang, was a ‘blue’. When a redheaded Irishman passed by, people would say, ‘There goes a blue’, and to this day Australians often give their redheaded friends the nickname ‘Bluey’ while ‘blue’ is the general equivalent to ‘pal’, ‘mate’ or ‘buddy’.

In 2000, when we were preparing to launch the airline in Australia, an Australian chef on Necker said to me ‘Why not call it Virgin Blue?’. He suggested that Aussies would connect our upstart nature and the traditional red logo with the name Virgin Blue. To highlight the play on words, we painted the planes a bold red. Following its strong domestic start, Virgin Blue became an international airline, and it now flies to the Middle East, many Pacific Island nations and North America-countries where the blue versus red wordplay is not understood. So in 2011, we renamed Virgin Blue and our other airlines in the region, uniting them all under the banner Virgin Australia.

If you find yourself in a difficult spot because of your company’s name-perhaps because business has expanded in different directions to what was anticipated-don’t panic. Try looking at other solutions; consider incorporating your old name into your new one. This could be the perfect opportunity to reintroduce your company to the media-tell them about your plans and your renamed business’s core values.

In our case we got lucky. While ‘Slipped Disc’ might have been a fun name for our record label, I am not so sure it would have worked quite as well for airlines or fitness clubs!