Market Research Assistant - TOR
BURN Manufacturing
Sales & Business Development
Yaounde, Cameroon
Posted on Nov 21, 2025
About the role
BURN Manufacturing is the leading clean cooking company in Africa, producing high-efficiency biomass and LPG stoves for regional and global markets. As BURN expands its B2B operations across West and Central Africa, the company aims to identify financially capable and strategically aligned partners who can act as exclusive importers and distributors of its biomass and LPG cookers.
Additionally, for LPG products, BURN seeks to deepen its understanding of the competitive landscape, including key brands, private-label products, major wholesalers, and import dynamics. This will support the company’s market-entry strategy and potential OEM collaboration opportunities from its factories in Kenya and Nigeria.
This consultancy will provide essential field-based market intelligence to inform partner selection, commercial planning, pricing strategy, and distribution setup in Cameroon.
Objectives of the assignment.
The consultancy aims to conduct a structured market research study to:
The consultant will undertake the following activities:
A. LPG Cooker Distribution Study
The study will be conducted primarily through fieldwork due to the limited online footprint of general trade actors in both markets. The consultant will use BURN’s standardized templates for data collection, GPS tagging, and photo documentation.
Data collection will include in-person interviews, market observations, shop audits, pricing validation, and triangulation across multiple sources.
Supplementary desk research may be used to review import regulations, tariffs, and relevant government policies. The consultant will coordinate regularly with BURN’s Nairobi HQ for guidance and quality assurance.
Deliverables
The consultant is expected to submit the following:
The consultant will report to a member of the B2B Partnerships and Business Development at BURN Manufacturing headquarters in Nairobi.
Duration and Location
The assignment will run for 30–45 days starting January 2026. The role may not include extensive local travel within the assigned country, as focus should be on the main economic hub ( Douala / Yaounde).
Skills and Experience
Please ensure your application is submitted in PDF format and written in English.
Qualified Female Candidates encouraged to Apply
BURN does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, processing, training, or any other fees).
BURN Manufacturing is the leading clean cooking company in Africa, producing high-efficiency biomass and LPG stoves for regional and global markets. As BURN expands its B2B operations across West and Central Africa, the company aims to identify financially capable and strategically aligned partners who can act as exclusive importers and distributors of its biomass and LPG cookers.
Additionally, for LPG products, BURN seeks to deepen its understanding of the competitive landscape, including key brands, private-label products, major wholesalers, and import dynamics. This will support the company’s market-entry strategy and potential OEM collaboration opportunities from its factories in Kenya and Nigeria.
This consultancy will provide essential field-based market intelligence to inform partner selection, commercial planning, pricing strategy, and distribution setup in Cameroon.
Objectives of the assignment.
The consultancy aims to conduct a structured market research study to:
- Map the LPG cooker distribution ecosystem, including brands, retailers, wholesalers, importers, and pricing structures.
- Identify and profile credible partners for biomass and LPG cooker distribution in the assigned market.
The consultant will undertake the following activities:
A. LPG Cooker Distribution Study
- Conduct market and shop visits across general trade and modern retail.
- Identify major LPG tabletop cooker brands and document product characteristics.
- Map retailers, wholesalers, sub-distributors, and importers, including GPS locations and contact persons.
- Gather and validate pricing across all stages of the value chain (importer → wholesaler → retailer → consumer).
- Profile key actors with details on portfolios, sourcing, financial capacity, geographic reach, and reputation.
- Capture geo-tagged photographic evidence.
- Identify strategic leads and opportunities relevant to BURN.
- Identify and profile importers/wholesalers of small appliances, cookware, hardware, and related FMCG products.
- Capture decision-maker contacts and assess financial capacity, logistics networks, and category diversification.
- Evaluate partner suitability based on distribution reach, operational reputation, and strategic alignment with BURN.
- Recommend priority partners for BURN’s market expansion.
The study will be conducted primarily through fieldwork due to the limited online footprint of general trade actors in both markets. The consultant will use BURN’s standardized templates for data collection, GPS tagging, and photo documentation.
Data collection will include in-person interviews, market observations, shop audits, pricing validation, and triangulation across multiple sources.
Supplementary desk research may be used to review import regulations, tariffs, and relevant government policies. The consultant will coordinate regularly with BURN’s Nairobi HQ for guidance and quality assurance.
Deliverables
The consultant is expected to submit the following:
- Weekly progress reports summarizing visited areas, actors engaged, findings, and challenges.
- A final Excel database containing all contacts, GPS locations, product photos, pricing, and actor profiles.
- A 10–15 slide PowerPoint report summarizing key insights, market structure, competitor analysis, partner mapping, and recommendations.
- A final presentation and debrief session to BURN’s Nairobi-based commercial team.
The consultant will report to a member of the B2B Partnerships and Business Development at BURN Manufacturing headquarters in Nairobi.
Duration and Location
The assignment will run for 30–45 days starting January 2026. The role may not include extensive local travel within the assigned country, as focus should be on the main economic hub ( Douala / Yaounde).
Skills and Experience
- Diploma or Bachelor’s degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field.
- 2–7 years of experience in sales, trade marketing, market development, FMCG distribution, or retail audits.
- Strong understanding of general trade distribution structures.
- Proven experience in field-based research or trade mapping.
- Strong analytical and reporting skills; proficiency in Excel and PowerPoint.
- Access to a smartphone capable of geo-tagging and high-quality photo capture.
- Bilingual proficiency in English and French is highly desirable.
Please ensure your application is submitted in PDF format and written in English.
Qualified Female Candidates encouraged to Apply
BURN does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, processing, training, or any other fees).
