Business tycoons: My 'aha' moment

Richard Branson: Serial entrepreneur, investor, founder of Virgin Group.

After setting up the first Virgin record shop in London, we scraped together some money and bought a rundown country house and converted the squash court into a recording studio called the Manor.
One day, an engineer from the Manor rang me and said he'd heard this incredible instrumental demo tape by a teenager called Mike Oldfield. He played every instrument himself. His expression came out in the music. He was an absolute genius.

Top 20 colleges with most billionaire alumni

University of Pennsylvania tops the list of colleges with the most billionaires as undergraduate alumni, according to a Wealth-X and UBS report.

In perhaps the most prestigious college ranking, a new report lists colleges with most global billionaire grads.

According to Wealth-X and UBS's "Billionaire Census," the University of Pennsylvania tops the list of 20 schools with the highest number of billionaire alumni.

The rest of the list reads like a laundry list of Ivy League and prestigious U.S. universities.
Some schools beyond the ivory tower made the cut: University of Mumbai and Moscow State University.
Schools that are tied were ranked by Wealth-X in terms of which has the wealthiest billionaires.
One surprising fact: 35% of billionaires didn't graduate from college.
Take a look to see which schools have the most super rich alums.

Jay Z invests in 'Uber for private jets':

• 
  
  Jetsmarter is an app built by 27-year-old entrepreneur Sergey Petrossev 
• New funding will go to expanding routes and buying up more flights
• Members pay $9,000 (£5,797) a year to get access to private flights

Chartering a private jet, it turns out, isn't as glamorous as it sounds.

You have to fill out what seems like an endless amount paperwork and be in constant touch with brokers – a hassle the mega-rich could do without.

Now a Jay Z-funded app, set to become the Uber for planes, has made the chore that little bit easier for the one per cent.

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10 Small Scale Business Ideas For Women

While there are untapped business opportunities in every industry, this article will be pointing out the fastest growing business opportunities for any woman. If you are a lady wishing to start a business; then you will find this list of fastest growing business opportunities very useful. The first step to starting a small business is to adequately prepare yourself. You may think this is not important but it can be the thin line between success and failure. Running a business is tough but highly rewarding. I will suggest you read the article below to further understand the need to prepare yourself....read below

8 WAYS TO ENTICE CUSTOMERS TO PAY FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF BUYING FROM YOU – BUYER CLUB

Do you have ways to entice customers to pay for the privilege of buying from you?

The "normal" way of buying

You know how things work when you go to the store.  You enter the store (both bricks and mortar and also "e-commerce" stores).  You walk around looking at what is for sale.  You see things that you want to buy and you put them in your cart.  You pull out your list and then gather the items that you need to buy.  Perhaps you comparison shop between different items.  You browse the sale items. Then you go to the check out register.  Your items are scanned and then you pay for them and leave the store.
But what if you needed to buy the privilege of buying from you?  What is you needed to previously purchase a "participation" card who's only value was the ability to check and buy from that store?  Wow…what would you think of that?

Do you have a membership option for your customers?  A buyers club?

Well, that time is here.  It has been for many years and there have been many different iterations of this type of program.  Some have been "buyers clubs" where you could purchase big-ticket items for wholesale + a few percent. Others were "wholesale clubs" such as Costco and Sam's Clubs, where you could buy items in bulk at much lower prices than in regular retail stores.  "Photo" clubs where you could get a better price on purchasing of your photo prints.  These are just a few of the different types of programs where customers purchase the privilege of buying from you.
In some cases, joining the club is free.  In others, it costs you real money to join.  Which do you think holds more value to the customer?  You bet…it's the one where they buy the privilege.  When you pay for something, you place a greater value upon it.

HOW TO FIND SMALL BUSINESS GRANTS FOR YOUR STARTUP

There are different ways to gain that, including saving up beforehand or opting for a business loan. However, both of these can be problematic and have their own downsides. Small business grants are available, and there are different types available. But how do you find them? Where do you even start looking for them?

9 Free Business Productivity Tools For Startups

Starting a business can be a daunting endeavor, especially if all you have is a cool product and not enough capital. In the tech world, or in any other niche for that matter, most startuppers fail not because they have bad products but because they are unable to generate enough consumer interest in their products.  Considering overheads and other back-office expenses, this scenario doesn’t come as a surprise. So if you’re still starting out and find yourself strapped for much needed funding to keep your startup afloat, the following free business productivity tools are worth checking out.