Sir Richard Branson continued his shred of the status quo on Monday, by crowning a winner of the 2012 "Screw Business As Usual" competition, which attracted more than 500 innovative and socially responsible entries from around the world.
Virgin Unite, Branson's foundation, honored Raise5, a Toronto-based social fundraising platform that allows people to donate services to help seed non-profits.
Raise5 will join Branson, a member of the HuffPost Small Business Board of Directors, and the Virgin Unite team on a trip to South Africa, where the group will share entrepreneurial ideas with local business owners at the Branson Centre of Entrepreneurship and enjoy a stay at Branson's private game reserve.
"The sheer number of incredible ideas submitted to the competition has been truly overwhelming," Branson said in a statement. "Raise5 is a deserving winner and a great example of how people are helping to truly screw business as usual to create a better world."
Jointly sponsored by the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation, Raise5's win was celebrated at the Screw Business As Usual Summit, held at Oliver's restaurant Fifteen in London. Branson and Oliver were joined by Ben & Jerry's co-founder Ben Cohen, Puma executive chairman Jochen Zeitz and other business and philanthropic leaders.
The competition, which attracted ideas like a solar-powered football and the world's most ethical pants, stems from Branson's latest book, "Screw Business As Usual" in which he shares his ideas about redirecting capitalism to help society and the environment.