By Isaac Akugizibwe

KIU, Main Campus - Over the years, Uganda's leading private University has produced total quality individuals who have demostrated exquisite perfomance in personal and community development through the knowledge and skillset attained in different academic fields. Katerega Uthman is one such example.

Given his age, Katerega owns NK Group Limited, one of Uganda's fastest growing marketing and public relations consultancy companies.

"All that is a product of having a vision, determination, passion, persistence and making a good network," he admitted.

Despite being an adent economics enthusiast, Katerega did not undertake an undergraduate business course, instead he opted for a Bachelor's of Arts in Education majoring in Economics.

"This was because I failed to win government sponsorship in the state university," he explained.

Nevertheless, he employs education skills in marketing, "A marketer is a teacher."

He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Education majoring in Economics in 2009 before starting his first ever company, NK Group Limited. It started as a stationery dealing in printing and publishing before he could upgrade it into a branding company.

"I realised that branding is key in any business therefore I had to pursue a certificate in graphics designing at Aptec where I learnt graphics designing."

Katerega did not stop at getting skills that would enhance his business brand, he also sought ways to enhance sales through proper marketing. Inspired by graphical inscriptions and designs around KIU, he discovered pursuing a Masters in Business Administration with bias in marketing still at the same university would turn him into an asset itself.

"I did MBA specifically to understand the business sense of my company," he affirmed.

He graduated with a Masters Degree in Business Administration in 2014. His research project focused on brand image and customer behaviour. After his degree, Katerega worked as Marketing Manager at Stabex Petroleum Company for close to three years in search of more capital before fully investing in his company which he later turned into a fully flegded marketing agency.

Currently, NK Group Limited is one of the fastest growing marketing agencies in Kampala with a networth of over 500 million Uganda shillings. The company also employs over ten professionals and many casual labourers in Kampala.

Apart from marketing and branding, Katerega is also a committed agriculturalist. He has dealt in coffee farming for the last 10 years on top of owning an acre full matooke plantation at his home in Ssembabule. 

He is also the Business Development Manager, Kanyisa HASS Ovacado Project, which is under the patronage of the Chinese Government. The project advocates for growing of avacado in Uganda as an alternative crop.

Katerega uthman believes that passion, determination, sacrifice, taking risks and establishing dependable networks are the surest key to success.

"Once you embrace those aspects, success becomes inevitable," he said.