Patrick Bitature; Ugandan Businessman, Entrepreneur and Industrialist
Businessman and entrepreneur Patrick Bitature is a force to reckon with in Uganda. Listed among Uganda’s wealthiest, he, like many others before him had a humble beginning but has gone on to grow an empire that is the envy of many.
Unlike many of his financial status, he is known to be modest and down to earth. “I feel honored because I did not expect it”, said Patrick who was speaking at a function after being chosen among the five business leaders of the future in the Most Respected CEO survey conducted by PriceWaterHouse Coopers.
Bitature has since received numerous awards and recognition for his contribution to Uganda’s business and charity community.
Bitature is one of the individuals who were involved in the organisation of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Uganda a while back that saw Uganda thrust in the spotlight; his hotel Protea in Kololo was one of the hotels that hosted some of the delegates.
All the wealth has not changed him a bit according to those close to him and in fact if one gets a the chance to meet him, one will quickly know that it is actually true. Patrick is ambitious and still looks out for the next best business venture all the while ready to learn and add to his vast wealth of knowledge; one of the things he deems very important if anyone is to survive in the business world.
Bitature says for him, success in business revolves around honesty, knowledge, hard work, loyalty, common sense, and sticking to the business code.
The birth of an Empire
Patrick Bitature started his business empire with a single company, Simba Telecom, then a retail chain dealership, in MTN airtime. When MTN came to town, people used to mock Bitature for being just a simple man who sold airtime; little did they know that they would soon eat their words; after all respectable most tycoons have been known to start small and end up big, having earned every penny and respect. Like fate would have it, from his first shop at Grand Imperial Hotel, Patrick Bitature built a chain of outlets and has since managed to amass himself a fortune. And like they say, the rest is history. He built an empire from scratch and is a now a proud owner of a number of businesses and properties all over Africa.
The Empire
Bitature owns Simba Telecom chain and is the very first Nokia Authorized dealer in Uganda. He also owns airtime dealerships in Kenya, Tanzania and Nigeria. Protea, his plush hotel in Kololo, which is run by the South African-based Protea Group, was open in time for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and has since added another one to their group, Protea Hotel in Entebbe. Patrick also owns Simba Tours and Travels, Simba Distributors Limited, Simba Properties Limited and Simba Forex Bureau.
Not one to stick to one business field, he has gone on to expand into broadcasting, with the acquisition of Dembe FM radio station, followed by Simba Electronics, an upscale electronics chain of stores and ZUKU TV that is giving former market kings DSTV a run for their money.
In addition to his private business interests, Patrick Bitature serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of UMEME, Directors of National Insurance Corpotaion, New Vision Group, Uganda Investment Authority. He is an associate Member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA), in the United Kingdom.
