Osei Kwame Despite

Last updated
Despite Kwame Osei
Born2 February 1962
OccupationBusinessman
Known forCEO of Despite Group of Companies
Children Kennedy Asante Osei

Osei Kwame Despite (born 2 February 1962) is a Ghanaian entrepreneur and a philanthropist with a foundation in music creation and knowledge of the broadcasting sector. [1] Osei-Kwame is the CEO of the Despite Firm Ltd, a trade company with subsidiaries in the media industry, including UTV, PEACE FM, OKAY FM, NEAT FM and HELLO FM in Kumasi. [2] [3] [4] [5] He was named Africa Entrepreneur of the Year at the African Achievers Awards in the United Kingdom in 2021. [6] [5] He was also honored with GH CAPTAIN's Award in 2019 for his contributions to the socio-economic development of the country. [7]

Contents

Early life

In the Ghanaian town of Agona Wiamoase, he was born, in the Ashanti region. He began his career as a merchant in Dunkwa-On-Offin, Ghana's Central Region, selling music cassettes, feeding bottles, padlocks, and other items. After years of struggling to make ends meet in the countryside, he and his colleagues relocated to Lagos, Nigeria. [8]

In 1983, he returned to Ghana with other Ghanaians who had fled Nigeria due to the country's political unrest. Back to his country, he only had a trident cassette player and a chain-saw machine. He started a timber contracting business with the chain-saw machine, but it was smashed by a falling tree on his first business trip. [9] He eventually moved on to selling cassette tapes before diversifying his business. [10] [11]

Career

To show his support for the local music industry and to prioritize Ghanaian culture, he moved into radio and founded the PeaceFM at Achimota Mile 7 Junction in 1999. [2] The station's experiments with the Akan language paid off, as radio listeners looking for local programming abandoned stations broadcasting primarily in the Queen's language on the 104.3 frequency.[ citation needed ] The radio industry flourished, culminating in the establishment of Hello FM in Kumasi and OkayFM in Accra, as well as peacefmonline.com. [12]

List of Companies [13]

Now, the Despite Group of Companies (DGC) has the following companies;

Personal life

Despite has a wife and nine children. Kennedy Osei Asante, his first son, is the General Manager of Despite Media. [17] In 2019, he married Tracy in an expensive ceremony that drew the attention of many people both inside and outside the country. [18] [19] [20] He is noted for collecting luxurious vehicles and has a great love for exotic cars. [21] He purchased a 3'000'000$ Bugatti Chiron in February 2022 to mark his 60th birthday, making him and Fkay one of just 5 individuals in Africa who own a Bugatti. [22]

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References

  1. ↑ "Social media celebrates Kwame Despite as he turns 60 - MyJoyOnline.com". Myjoyonline. 2022-02-02. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  2. 1 2 "Osei Kwame Despite, Biography". GhanaWeb. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  3. ↑ Online, Peace FM. "EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Dr. Osei Kwame Despite Celebrates His 60th Birthday In Grand Style". Peacefmonline - Ghana news. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  4. ↑ Larnyoh, Magdalene Teiko (2021-04-24). "One of Ghana's millionaires, Osei Kwame Despite, prays for the country to have more rich men". Business Insider Africa. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  5. 1 2 "Dr. Osei Kwame Despite Crowned African Entrepreneur Of The Year At The African Achievers Awards Ceremony In The UK - Ghanajoint.com". 2021-12-11. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  6. ↑ Essel-Lamptey, Vida (2021-12-11). "Osei Kwame Despite is African Entrepreneur of the Year". GhanaPlus. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  7. ↑ "Osei Kwame 'Despite', Ernest Ofori Sarpong, others to be honoured at GH CAPTAIN'S Award". The Ghana Guardian News. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  8. ↑ "From a Cassette Seller to a Media Mogul: The Success Story of Kwame Despite". Ghana Talks Business. 2020-10-30. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  9. ↑ "Osei Kwame Despite, Biography".
  10. ↑ Annang, Evans (2020-09-23). "This is how Osei Kwame Despite makes and spends his money". Pulse Ghana. Retrieved 2022-02-04.
  11. ↑ "Dr. Osei Kwame Despite Biography | Profile | Ghana". www.peacefmonline.com. Retrieved 2024-05-03.
  12. ↑ "The list of businesses owned by Osei Kwame Despite". Myinfo Ghana. 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  13. ↑ "Dr. Osei Kwame Despite Crowned African Entrepreneur Of The Year At The African Achievers Awards Ceremony In The UK - Ghanajoint.com". 2021-12-11. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  14. ↑ "U2 Company Limited". Ghana Mom-rsf. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  15. ↑ "Neat Foods Company Limited". GEPA Buyer Portal. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  16. ↑ "Atona foods company limited,Tesano | Accra - Ghana". toptradefairs. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  17. ↑ "You're the king and love of my life - Tracy honours Kennedy Osei and Damon Osei the founder of Youth In Business". GhanaWeb. 2021-10-10. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  18. ↑ "Here Are All The 9 Children of Osei Kwame Despite - Georgeweb". 2021-05-18. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  19. ↑ "Personality Profile of Kennedy Osei Asante | Accra Mail". 2021-01-03. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  20. ↑ "Kennedy Osei: School, houses, cars, businesses, family etc-Here's everything you need to know". GhPage. 2020-02-18. Retrieved 2022-02-05.
  21. ↑ "Osei Kwame Despite, Biography".
  22. ↑ "Ghana: Bugatti Chiron breaks down; crowd tries in vain to push-start it". 29 December 2022.
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