From Cassettes to Conglomerate: How Osei Kwame Despite Built a Business Empire
Osei Kwame Despite, one of Ghana's most recognisable business figures, has turned a small trading operation into a diversified empire spanning media, food processing, and financial services. His journey from selling music cassettes and padlocks to owning a portfolio of companies is a powerful example of homegrown entrepreneurship and the opportunities available in Ghana's growing economy.
The 64-year-old founder of Despite Media Group, born on February 2, 1962, at Agona Wiamoase in the Ashanti Region, started his career in Dunkwa in the Central Region. There, he sold music cassettes, feeding bottles, and padlocks to make a living. In the early 1980s, he travelled to Lagos, Nigeria, in search of better opportunities, but his stay was cut short in 1983 when Nigeria expelled large numbers of undocumented West African migrants.
Returning to Ghana with a chainsaw and a cassette player, Despite attempted to enter the timber business. When that venture failed, he went back to what he knew best: selling music. He established Despite Stores, a music distribution business that supplied cassettes across the country and helped him build valuable connections in the entertainment industry. The business name eventually became the name by which he is widely known today.
How did Despite move from music trading to media?
Despite's major breakthrough came in 1999 when he established Peace FM in Accra. The station attracted a growing audience with its Akan-language programming, music, news, and political discussions. The success of Peace FM paved the way for expansion into other radio stations, including Okay FM, Neat FM, and Hello FM in Kumasi.
He subsequently established Peacefmonline.com and expanded into television with the launch of United Television (UTV) in 2013. These investments transformed his early music distribution business into a major media operation, giving him a significant presence in Ghana's broadcasting and digital news industries.
What businesses does Despite own beyond media?
Beyond broadcasting, Despite diversified his business interests through a long-standing partnership with businessman Ernest Ofori Sarpong, founder of the Special Group of Companies. Together, they have been associated with investments in U2 Salt and Best Point Savings and Loans, while UTV forms part of Despite's wider media interests.
Despite also ventured into food processing through Neat Foods, which produces packaged Ghanaian food products, including Neat Fufu. His investments across different sectors have helped broaden his business portfolio beyond radio and television, providing additional avenues for growth.
What is the Despite Automobile Museum?
In June 2025, Despite expanded his portfolio of public-facing ventures with the opening of the Despite Automobile Museum at East Legon in Accra. Commissioned by Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, the museum houses more than 60 classic and luxury vehicles, including a Bugatti Chiron and Rolls-Royce models. The collection has further drawn public attention to his wealth and passion for luxury automobiles.
What is known about Despite's wealth and family?
Despite's business success has generated considerable public interest in his wealth. However, the exact value of his fortune remains difficult to establish because his companies have not publicly disclosed consolidated financial accounts.
Meanwhile, the businessman has begun involving the next generation in managing his investments. His eldest son, Kennedy Osei, serves as General Manager of Despite Media Group and is involved in other business activities, reflecting the family's role in the continued development of the business empire.
Despite has also supported charitable causes, including donations to vulnerable people in his hometown and assistance to victims of the June 3, 2015, flood and fire disaster in Accra.
More than four decades after returning from Nigeria with limited resources, Despite has evolved from a small-scale trader into a businessman with interests across multiple industries. His story is a testament to the power of resilience, adaptability, and the entrepreneurial spirit that continues to drive Ghana's economic progress.
With additional files from Billionaires.Africa