For every successful thing Richard Branson's done (releasing Never Mind the Bollocks... and launching Virgin Atlantic), there's an idea that just didn't quite seem to work out. Add Virgin Cars to the latter list. His multi-brand "vehicle department store" in Salford, England never quite took off, although it did sell 12,000 cars online before the store itself opened. But the softness of the automotive market meant that the thin margins required by Branson's model meant that the company wasn't turning a profit. Orders already placed will be fulfilled, but somewhere, some fat lady's singing, "No future/No future/No future for you..."
End of the road for Virgin Cars [Manchester Online]
Related:
Branson on Rover: Say Hi to Hybrids, Ello to EU Loans [Internal]