Distributor Search & Selection
Connect with verified partners in African markets. We map the distribution landscape, screen candidates against your commercial criteria, and stay with you through negotiation, so your route to market rests on evidence rather than introductions.
The Right Partner Changes Everything
In most African markets your distributor is your business. They hold the trade relationships, the credit lines to retailers, the warehousing and the last-mile fleet. Choosing well compresses years off your growth curve; choosing badly locks your brand into an exclusive agreement with a partner who cannot deliver, and unwinding that is slow, expensive and public.
Mapped, Not Introduced
We start from the whole landscape, not a contact book. Every distributor operating in your category and territory is identified and profiled for coverage, warehousing, cold chain, fleet, existing portfolio and conflicting brands before any shortlist is drawn.
Verified Before Contact
Registration, ownership, licences and trade references are confirmed before you ever meet a candidate.
Terms That Hold
Exclusivity, targets and termination rights structured so performance is enforceable, not aspirational.
Selection Process
A structured funnel that takes a market from an open field of candidates to one signed, referenced and incentive-aligned partner.
Start a partner search arrow_forward1. Landscape Mapping
We build a complete picture of who moves goods in your category and territory: national distributors, regional wholesalers and specialist importers. We record the coverage, infrastructure and brand portfolio of each.
- Channel mapping
- Portfolio conflict check
2. Screening & Shortlist
Candidates are scored against the criteria that matter for your product: route-to-market fit, storage and cold chain capability, working capital, sales team depth and regional reach. You receive a ranked shortlist with the reasoning behind every position.
- Weighted scorecard
- Capacity assessment
3. Due Diligence
Company registration, beneficial ownership, tax standing, import licences, litigation history and trade references are all verified independently. This is the same standard applied in our business verification service.
4. Negotiation & Onboarding
We support commercial negotiation on margin structure, volume targets, marketing contribution, exclusivity scope and exit provisions, then help onboard the partner with pricing, training and a first-year performance review cadence.
Search, Quantified
What a structured partner search delivers over an introduction-led one.
200+
Distributors Profiled
Across FMCG, industrial, agricultural and healthcare categories.
8wks
Typical Search
From landscape mapping to a signed distribution agreement.
100%
Independently Verified
Every shortlisted partner is checked before you are introduced.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does a distributor search take?
A single-market search typically runs 6 to 10 weeks from brief to signed agreement. Landscape mapping and screening take about three weeks, due diligence another two, and the remainder depends on how quickly both sides move through commercial negotiation. Multi-market searches run in parallel rather than sequentially.
Should I appoint one exclusive distributor or several?
It depends on the size of the territory and the depth of your category. A single exclusive partner gives you focus and a motivated investor in your brand, but concentrates risk. Larger markets often work better split by region or by channel: one partner for modern trade, another for the informal market. We model both options against your volume targets before you commit.
What if the distributor underperforms after signing?
This is why the agreement structure matters more than the introduction. We build in measurable volume targets, defined review points and clean termination rights so underperformance has a contractual remedy. Where a relationship does need to end, we can run a replacement search while the existing agreement winds down to avoid a gap in supply.
Do you work with businesses exporting out of Africa as well?
Yes. The same methodology applies in reverse when an African producer needs distribution partners in Europe, the Gulf or Asia. In that direction the emphasis shifts toward buyer verification, certification requirements and shipping terms, which we cover alongside our Export Africa service.
Find Your Route to Market
Tell us the product and the territory. We will map the distribution landscape and come back with a shortlist worth meeting.