Tabitha Karanja

Tabitha Mukami Muigai Karanja is a Kenyan businesswoman, entrepreneur and industrialist. She is the founder and current Chief Executive Officer of Keroche Breweries, the first large brewery in Kenya owned by a non multinational company. Keroche accounts for 20% of Kenya's beer consumption, as of October 2012.[1]

Tabitha Mukami Karanja MBS
Born (1964-08-29) 29 August 1964
Kenya
NationalityKenyan
OccupationBusiness
Years active1996 to date
Known forleading and ownership of Keroche Breweries
TitleChief Executive Officer Keroche Breweries
Spouse(s)Joseph Karanja

Early life and education

Tabitha was born near Kijabe, in central Kenya. After attending Kenyan schools, she took up employment in the Ministry of Tourism as an Accounting Clerk. She met and married her husband, who owned a successful hardware store in Naivasha town. In 1997, the couple closed the hardware store and went into the wine-making business.[2]

Career

Beginning in 1997, Tabitha Karanja and her husband, started making fortified wine, targeting the lower end of the market. In 2007, when the government enacted heavy taxes on locally made wines, her product was priced out of the market. She switched to manufacturing ready-to-drink gin and vodka, which her state-of-the-art factory still makes today. In 2008, she added beer to her repertoire of alcoholic drinks, beginning with a brand called "Summit". In 2013, the factory began expansion plans to increase beer production from 60,000 bottles per day to 600,000 bottles per day.[3] The refurbished plant, which cost KSh5 billion (US$55.5 million), was commissioned by Adan Mohammed, the Cabinet Secretary for Industrialisation, on 31 March 2015.[4]

Personal life

Tabitha is married to Joseph Karanja and together, they are the parents of four children; James Karanja, Anerlisa Muigai, Edward Muigai and the late Tecra Muigai. Joseph Muigai Karanja serves as the Chairman of Keroche Breweries Limited.[5]

See also

References
  1. "Meet Kenya's Pioneer Female Brewer, Tabitha Karanja". Ventures Africa Magazine. 27 October 2012. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  2. Muiruri, Peter (29 August 2014). "Tabitha Karanja, The CEO of Keroche Breweries: Resilient At 50". The Standard (Kenya). Retrieved 18 October 2014.
  3. Jessica Ellis, and Lillian Leposo (15 March 2013). "Female Beer Boss Who Took On Drinks Giant". Cable News Network (CNN).
  4. Mwangi, Macharia (31 March 2015). "Keroche Seeks Larger Market Share With Sh5bn Brew Plant". Daily Nation (Nairobi). Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  5. "Keroche Breweries Tabitha Karanja's Bold Journey To The Top". The Campus Mirror (Kenya). Retrieved 18 October 2014.
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