Teachers across the country have come to heavily rely on Targeter Series revision books to prepare their pupils for the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education (KCPE). Interestingly, the founder of these most sought-after revision books is not a teacher by profession. Mr.Peter K. Kiarie dream of becoming a science teacher came crumbling when he could not raise money to proceed to university. He worked as a tout in Western Kenya before venturing in the unpredictable world of publishing. Seeing a void in the educational sector, the entrepreneurial bug got the better of him and he, together with his elder brother Mr.Boniface Macharia K, started publishing revision books in 2004.
Targeter Educational Publishers
The firm opened its doors in 2004 with the two siblings as the only employees. Before it was incorporated into a private limed company in 2014, the firm operated as Targeter Printing Press. Raking in millions of shillings, the company began with only kes20,000 in an office that they paid kes7,000 per month rent. The company has grown to develop content for secondary school as well. Mr. Macharia, who is the managing director of the firm, told Enterprise how they entered the market:
“There was a gap in the education sector as there were no proper revision books for pupils to use; the material available was outdated…”
First Examination Papers
The duo printed 20,000 copies of Targeter Series revision books at a cost of kes300,000. The printer was gracious enough to give the brothers credit. The MD told a local daily of their formative years:
“It cost us Sh15 to print each copy and we had therefore accumulated a Sh300,000 debt by the time we left the printing press with our first product….”
Printing Books
It was not until 2008, that the two ventured into printing Early Childhood and Development Education (ECDE). They also started printing encyclopaedic books that covered all subjects.
Moving Office
Growth of and trust in brands associated with Targeter Educational Publishers saw the company move office to a spacious space in Athi House in 2009 where packaging and distribution takes place. They went on to invest in a kes17 million printing press that was installed in a warehouse along Outer Ring Road. The printer prints about 1.2 million examination pages per day and 1.1 million book pages per day.
The company has a total of 60 employees.
Here are the recent publications by Targeter
Combined Encyclopaedia CBC Pre-Primary 2
Combined Encyclopaedia CBC
Combined Encyclopaedia Grade 3
Combined Encyclopaedia Grade 2
The ‘A’ Finder Physics Revision Book
The ‘A’ Finder Nuru ya lnsha na lugha
Targeter Combined 7 Encyclopedia-kes750 at Text Book Centre
Where you can find Targeter Series Revision Books
Savanis
Text Book Centre
Naivas
Njamba’s Bookshop
Patmat Bookshop
Ereto Bookshop
Laxmi Booksellers And Stationers
Contacts
General Inquiries: 0203342573
Email: info@targeterpublishers.co.ke Next
