Dr. Osei Kwame Despite, a Ghanaian entrepreneur, is the CEO of the Despite Group of Companies, a conglomerate with interests in media, real estate, and banking.
The Despite Group of companies’ media subsidiaries includes UTV, PEACE FM, OKAY FM, NEAT FM, and HELLO FM in Kumasi.
He was born on February 2nd, 1962 in Agona Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region of Ghana.
Early life and Education
Osei Despite started his career as a merchant in Dunkwa-Offinso, in Ghana’s Central Region, where he sold products including padlocks, feeding bottles, and music cassettes among others.
He and his colleagues moved to Lagos, Nigeria, after spending years in the country struggling to make ends meet.
Despite returned to Ghana in 1983 together with other Ghanaians who had left the country because of political unrest.
He brought only a chainsaw and a Trident tape player with him to his native land. The chain-saw machine he used to launch his timber contracting firm was destroyed on his first business trip by a falling tree.
Afterward, he started selling cassette cassettes before expanding his line of business.
He later expanded his media empire to include other radio stations such as Neat FM, Okay FM, and Hello FM, as well as UTV, a television station.
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Career
Despite started his business career by selling cassette tapes, which were popular in Ghana in the 1980s.
He later founded Despite Enterprise, which specialized in the importation and marketing of electronic items such as cassette tapes, radios, and televisions.
In 1999, Despite founded Peace FM, a radio station based in Accra that became one of Ghana’s most popular radio stations.
Osei Kwame Despite, in addition to his media interests, is also involved in real estate through his company, Despite Group of Companies.
Despite has won multiple awards for his commercial skills and charity endeavors.
He was named Entrepreneur of the Year at the Ghana Business Awards in 2017 and earned a lifetime achievement award at the Ghana UK Based Achievement Awards (GUBA) in 2018 and also named Africa Entrepreneur of the Year at the African Achievers Awards in the United Kingdom in 2021.
List of Companies
The Despite Group of Companies (DGC) has the following companies;
- U2 Company Limited (Iodated Salt Production)
- Okay FM
- Peace FM
- Hello FM
- Neat FM
- Despite Stores
- Best Point Savings and Loans (Finance)
- Farming and Building Construction businesses
- Neat Foods Company Limited (which produces and markets NEAT Fufu, NEAT Banku, NEAT Abenkwan, NEAT Hausa Koko, and NEAT Dairy Products)
- United Television Company Limited
- Atona Foods LTD ( which produces THIS WAY chocolate drink which comes in different flavors, and the THIS WAY Motherlac children’s cereal
Personal Life
Kwame Despite is married and has nine children. His first son, Kennedy Osei Asante, is the general manager of Despite Media. He married Tracy in 2019 in a lavish event that attracted a lot of media coverage both domestically and abroad.
Despite is well known for collecting expensive cars and has a great passion for exotic vehicles. To celebrate his 60th birthday in February 2022, he spent $3,000,000 on a Bugatti Chiron, making him one of just five people in Africa to do so.
Overall, Osei Kwame Despite is a successful Ghanaian businessman who has made significant contributions to the Ghanaian media and real estate sectors, as well as to his community through philanthropic work.
References:
- United Television (UTV): https://utv.peacefmonline.com/
- Wikipedia: Osei Kwame Despite
- Ghanaweb: Osei Kwame Despite, Biography
- Peace FM: EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Dr. Osei Kwame Despite Celebrates His 60th Birthday In Grand Style
- Myjoyonline: Social media celebrates Kwame Despite as he turns 60
