Raul Leal had been in leadership roles in the boutique lodging sector for 15 years when he first met Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, which includes Virgin Hotels. In a conversation with Lodging Luminaries host Jason Freed, Leal shares his first meeting with Branson when he asked him to manage the hotel brand, the future of hospitality industry, how the coronavirus crisis threatens the survival of branded legacy hotels, and why everybody wants to work at Virgin Hotels.