Business Development Officer

About Confidential Client

You will build a territory from the ground up for one of East Africa's leading fintech lenders, focusing on providing working capital to small businesses like dukas, kiosks, and market stalls. Your core responsibility is to create demand by engaging new retailers and building strategic relationships with FMCG distributors in your assigned field territory in Kenya. This role is the front end of the commercial engine, with everything downstream depending on the qualified leads you bring into the system.

This role is where the commercial engine truly starts. You own an assigned field territory in Kenya, with the critical job of creating demand where none currently exists. You'll be out in the market, initiating conversations with retailers who've never heard of the product, and cultivating distributor relationships that can open doors to dozens more. You are accountable for covering your territory according to a route plan you build each week, and your first ninety days will be measured primarily on this coverage and the volume of qualified retailers you bring into the system. This is not a warm-lead role; every customer starts as a stranger, and you must be comfortable with persistent cold outreach and making your own introductions. If you thrive on turning initial "no's" into "yes's" and building structured channels from scratch, this role offers direct ownership and impact on the growth of a high-quality lending book.

What you'll do

• Cover your assigned territory weekly according to a self-built route plan, ensuring comprehensive market presence.
• Map and prioritize distributors in your region to build a high-potential pipeline for the stock credit product.
• Originate new retailer and distributor customers through proactive field engagement and cold outreach.
• Qualify and accurately capture leads into the system, ensuring they are reachable and correctly documented for the call floor.
• Recruit and maintain high-leverage distributor relationships to gain access to their broader retailer bases.
• Conduct structured monthly performance reviews with distributors covering disbursements, collections, and new customer acquisition, agreeing on action plans and support.
• Close first loans in the field directly with ready retailers, rather than deferring the process.
• Provide clean, contextual handovers to the call floor for conversion and transition fifth-loan customers to the retention channel.

Requirements

• You have at least two years of experience in a field sales, distribution, or route-to-market role where you were responsible for generating new, cold customers.
• You can provide evidence of opening new accounts without relying on inheritance, referrals, or inbound leads.
• You are fluent in both English and Kiswahili, enabling direct communication with duka owners in their shops.
• You are willing and able to spend your entire working week in the field within your assigned territory.
• You possess a KCSE or equivalent qualification, and a valid driving or riding license if required by your territory.
• You are not deterred by rejection; you see "no" as an invitation for a third visit.
• You are self-disciplined, capable of planning your own week and holding yourself accountable for territory coverage.
• You think strategically about routes and channels, understanding how one distributor can unlock fifty retailers.
• You prioritize accurate record-keeping, knowing that colleagues downstream depend on your data.

Nice to have

• FMCG distribution, informal trade, or route-to-market experience.
• Existing relationships with distributors serving micro-retail.
• Exposure to credit, lending, or mobile money.