ITMB Publishing Ltd (International Travel Maps and Books, if you're not in a hurry) was conceived in the early 1980s from the partnership of an Australian cartographer named Kevin Healey and Jack Joyce, a Canadian map retailer, who were both frustrated at the unimpressive range of maps of Central and South America on the market. At that time, European cartographic publishers apparently expressed little curiosity for that part of the world, as it wasn't perceived to be of sufficient interest to their market.
Fuelled by ambition, but with little in the way of resources, the dynamic duo planned to remedy the situation step-by-step, and began by self-publishing a two-sheet map of South America in 1985 with some support from the British publisher Bradt. As the struggle progressed they gradually produced more titles covering South American regions over the next few years. By 1991 the three maps of North-East, North-West and Southern South America had been accomplished, and their first country map, Costa Rica, was ready in 1990 to coincide with the upsurge in tourism there. As recognition of their efforts grew, more locations were covered, and now ITMB is one of the largest and most successful map publishing houses in the world. They have over 180 titles in print through the work of several enthusiastic, independent cartographers and joint-venture associates.
If you browse through Stanfords' web pages for Central and South America you will come across many examples of their work. Their bestselling map at Stanfords is Ecuador, with Costa Rica, Belize, Galapagos and Venezuela also falling in the top 20 bestsellers list. Other titles include Amazon Basin, Argentina, Brazil, Easter Island, Guyana and Uruguay. These attractive maps are usually characterised by the use of elevation tinting to denote topography, extensive detail and the inclusion, to a varying extent, of notes on historical and geographical aspects of the subject area. Not only Latin American countries and cities have been tackled, but also much of Canada, and in particular ITMB's backyard, the British Columbia region. In more recent years Africa, Central Asia, the Middle East and South East Asia have increasingly come under ITMB's scrutiny as they extend their gaze further afield for regions inadequately covered for travellers. It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it.
Author: Jack Joyce
Date: 1 September 2001