2. Virgin Hotel
Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson has left his mark on New York City in many ways. On his blog, Branson reminisces on the first Virgin Atlantic flight landing in New York City (technically New Jersey’s Newark Airport), the Virgin megastore in Times Square and a tank rolling through the busy streets of Manhattan for the launch of Virgin Cola.
Branson’s latest venture in the Big Apple is a new hotel on Broadway. At the groundbreaking ceremony in 2015, Branson buried a time capsule to commemorate the relationship and history the Virgin company shares with New York City. Inside are various articles representing the Virgin empire such as earphones and a JFK boarding pass from a Virgin flight, keycards from Virgin hotels, a CD from the Virgin store, a can of Virgin cola and a photo of Branson outside his former Times Square Mega store. Branson writes that his intent is “to build a timeless hotel, so hopefully that capsule will never see the light of day again.” Construction of the new hotel is set to be completed in 2018.
