How blind optimism spawned successful publishing business

Given that he has grown from relative obscurity to a wealthy, powerful publisher, Spotlight managing director Simon Sossion is candid about his past.

As we engaged him on issues including his struggle to succeed and his relationship with his brother Wilson Sossion, who is the Kenya National Union of Teachers (Knut) secretary-general, the older Sossion was quick to stress that he is his own man who worked his way up from a teacher at Kipsigis Girls Secondary School.

“He has his own duties and I have my own ambitions. His influence in the education sector has played no impact to the success of my publishing firm,” he firmly said. The Literature graduate of Kenyatta University said his journey in the world of business had been anything but rosy, describing publishing as a trade between the stock exchange and the cathedral.

“It is between making money and offering social services,” he told the Business Daily during an interview at his Westlands office.

It all started in 2008 when, through blind optimism, he started Spotlight Publishers from the then struggling Target Publications.

Their offices were located in a dingy room at Utalii House in Nairobi and they started off with only one Kiswahili book. At the time he had just resigned from Longhorn Publishers where he had worked for 12 years as a publishing manager.

“It was the best decision I ever made. It was more of starting from small to big unaware of how tomorrow would be. It taught me the need to start a business when you are energetic. Most business are created when people are about to retire or get sacked. Sometimes they don’t survive because of high expectations and the need to be proved right.

“It was a combination of many factors, risk taking and resilience having left a well-paying job at a local publishing firm. I had a very small work force that included me and the messenger,” Mr Sossion said.

The publisher said he wanted to provide what was missing in the market driven by consumer needs. But it wasn’t easy. He unveiled his young firm starting with a single Kiswahili title by Wallah Bin Wallah – the prolific author of the Kiswahili Mufti series.

Mr Sossion said his initial focus was on the Kenyan market and it was only later that he started pursuing business opportunities in the regional markets after he made his name locally.

“The initial plan was working on revision material which was and still is a niche market in primary and secondary schools. We saw a gap and improved on quality. You always remain on top when you do things differently.”

He said Spotlight Publishers was started with Sh50,000 from his own savings. Today, the publisher has 500 titles in his stable that mainly revolve around revision works for primary and secondary learners as well as books on mathematics, kiswahili, sciences and Islamic religions, among others.

Some of the titles include Torch Encyclopedia, Spotlight Quick Revision and KCPE Mirror. He said it did not come as a surprise when the Ugandan government got in touch with him after he bid to supply primary schools in the country with English study books. Though he did not disclose how much he made from the transaction, he admitted the deal was worth millions.

Mr Sossion said Spotlight Publishers started off with only one author before he commissioned 12 more. But with the growth of its portfolio, the numbers have now risen to 100. He attributes the success to working with people who understand the publishing market and allowing them to develop their creativity.

“Publishing is my passion. I have been in the book industry for 25 years. There have been highs and lows but you have to work on both your strength and weaknesses and encourage fresh ideas. It has not been easy but you have to be very persistent and patient.”

Unsurprisingly, Spotlight’s biggest client is the government and Mr Sossion says there is wisdom in borrowing to finance the growth of enterprises. But he is not happy about the government’s move to subject books to value added tax.

“You don’t tax knowledge. This has made our books expensive in Kenya compared to Uganda and Tanzania.” Mr Sossion cites his reading culture as one of the key aspects that modelled his risk-taking attitude in doing business.

His motivation, he said, came from reading “Business at the Speed of Thought” by Bill Gates. He also named media mogul SK Macharia as one of the people he looks up to as a role model.

“Here is a man who even in the greatest darkness is very sure the next risk may be the waiting success. His struggles and achievements have only made him stronger and successful while maintaining modesty,” he said.

When it comes to challenges, he said piracy is the biggest threat to the book market that has affected the growth of the industry with established publishers losing a lot of money to rogue publishers. Mr Sossion is the vice chairman of Kenya Publishers Association.

“I can confirm that in terms of sales turnover, brand visibility and top-off-the-mind brand mentions, we rank fourth among all the Kenyan publishers and we are tirelessly working our way to the top rank,” he said.

Spotlight Publishers East Africa Limited has a workforce of 35 employees. Mr Sossion however was unwilling to disclose its annual turnover.

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