A Step-by-Step Guide for Last Mile Distributors
Selling refrigerators for productive use is an emerging product category that provides a great business opportunity for last mile distributors and has the potential to provide valuable economic benefits to last mile communities.
This publication explains the challenges and best practices and is designed to support distributors at different stages: from those researching the opportunity, to piloting sales at a small scale, to preparing for a scale up of their sales operations.
Practical advice for business operations
The guide is broken down into seven core business operations that a company should focus on when adding refrigeration to its product portfolio. These are: consumer demand and value proposition, sales and marketing, product and supplier selection, consumer finance, stock financing, logistics, and after-sales support.
Best practice from last mile distributors
The information presented is the result of wide sector research and close engagement with three last mile distributors who shared the practical issues and learnings from their experiences of selling refrigeration for productive use. Case studies from these companies are included at the end of the resource.
Funders, technical assistance providers and manufacturers can also use this resource to better understand and engage with last mile distributors.
This downloadable resource has been designed primarily for reading on a desktop computer or laptop.
About this resource
This resource was published by the Global Distributors Collective (GDC) in February 2025. The GDC is a joint initiative from Practical Action and Bopinc.
Authors: Eyerusalem Mitiku and Gerwin Jansen at Bopinc.
Contributors: Abigail Kuria, Martha Wakoli and Stella Madete at CLASP; Nico Francou and Timothy Musaazi at POPO Africa; Habiba Ali and Safiya Aliyu at Sosai; Francine Munyaneza, Claudine Uwineza and Charlene Byukusenge at Munyax Eco.
Language: English
Length: 21 pages
This material has been funded by UK aid from the UK government via the Transforming Energy Access platform; however, the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the UK government’s official policies.