CATEGORY RESEARCH & PRODUCT OPPORTUNITY ANALYST

WDM Brands B.V. | Remote | 2 days per week (16 hours) | Freelance | USD $6-10/hr

THIS IS NOT FOR YOU IF:

You want to churn out long lists of keywords. This is deep work on one market at a time, not volume.
You struggle to say no. Half this job is telling us which opportunities to walk away from.
You have never sold or researched physical products online.
You cannot work with some overlap in European business hours.

If none of those apply, keep reading.

WHO WE ARE

WDM Brands is a Dutch e-commerce business selling around 500 products on ---------- , the largest marketplace in the Netherlands and Belgium. We are moving toward fewer, better products in bigger categories. To do that well, we need someone who can look at a whole market, tell us where the real opportunities are, and just as importantly, tell us where the traps are.

WHAT YOU WOULD ACTUALLY DO

Each month you take one category and go deep. Not a list of keywords. A full read of the market. You come back with a clear presentation that answers three things:

Where are the real opportunities in this category, and why.
What should we avoid, and why. Too competitive, margins too thin, quality problems, whatever it is.
If you were us, what product line would you launch here, and what does the business case look like.

A concrete example. Say we give you fitness. A weak researcher comes back with "resistance bands have high demand." A strong one comes back with: skip resistance bands, the market is saturated and margins are gone, but adjustable dumbbells are a real opportunity, here are the three competitors worth studying, here is the price gap, here is the product line I would build and why. That second answer is the job.

WHAT GOOD LOOKS LIKE

You see a category as a set of segments, not a pile of products. You know which segments to go deep on and which to drop fast.
You are honest about what the data does and does not show. If demand looks strong but the proof is thin, you say so.
You think about margin, competition, and quality together, not just search volume.
You can turn a full category read into a clear, decision-ready presentation, not a raw spreadsheet.
You have the judgement to recommend a product line and stand behind it.

WHAT YOU MUST HAVE

Real experience researching or selling physical products online. Amazon, Bol, Shopify, or similar.
Strong analytical skills. You are comfortable with competitor analysis, pricing, and margin thinking.
The ability to build a clear presentation that leads to a decision.
Fluent English, written and spoken.
Available 2 days per week (16 hours) with some overlap with European hours.

NICE TO HAVE

Experience with category management or private label product development.
Familiarity with tools like Helium 10, Keepa, or MarktMentor (we can provide access).
Experience presenting recommendations directly to a founder or decision-maker.

WHAT YOU GET OUT OF IT

Real ownership. Your research directly d ---------- what we launch. You see your calls play out in the business.
A direct line to the founder. No layers, no politics.
Room to grow. Starts at one category a month. If it works, it grows into more categories and more responsibility.
Performance bonus and a monthly health bonus you can put toward whatever keeps you well.
A flexible, remote team from all over the world.

HOW TO APPLY

No long CV. Answer these three questions in your own words. Keep it sharp.

Pick any product category you know well. Tell us one segment inside it you would avoid and one you would go after, and explain why for each. We care more about your reasoning than the specific products.
When you recommend launching a product, what do you need to see in the data before you are confident enough to put your name on it?
What is your experience with physical products online, and how many hours per week are you available?

One last thing. We get a lot of applications and most people do not read the full post. To show us you have, start your application with the word CATEGORY in capitals at the top. Applications without it will not be reviewed.

We look forward to hearing from someone who enjoys going deep.