Virgin Galactic’s NASA Partnership and Space Tourism – A Teaching Case

Abstract

Virgin Galactic is the world’s first private commercial space tourism company that has received much attention from the international media, business pundits, space agencies like NASA, and the New Space sector’s emerging forces. Serial entrepreneur Sir Richard Branson entered the commercial spaceflight business in 2004 with a deal under which Virgin Galactic would license the technology behind SpaceShipOne to take customers into suborbital space. The company has been through eventful years, including a fatal accident, delays in the launch, and struggling financial health. Virgin Galactic remains committed to the world’s first operational and profitable private space tourism company. In his role as the company’s errant, adventure-seeking brand ambassador, Virgin Galactic and Branson face interrelated marketing, business model, and financial problems. Branson faces the challenge of keeping his promising company alive, which has not generated revenues since its inception. Branson has taken several measures under current economic situations to raise the much-needed cash to keep his ambitious entrepreneurial venture functional. In June 2020, Virgin Galactic announced a deal with NASA to support and train the private astronauts for spaceflights. The case encourages students to analyze the multifaceted challenges and dilemmas in an emancipated entrepreneurial initiative. This case study’s potential audience is upper-division undergraduate business and MBA students attending entrepreneurship, marketing, or finance courses. Students in leadership and organizational behavior courses might also benefit from the case study.

Keywords: business model innovation, commercial space travel, emancipated entrepreneurship, NewSpace, partnerships, startup, space tourism