Mehedi and bridal service

About the business

Mehedi and bridal work means drawing henna designs on the bride's and the guests' hands and feet before a wedding, a gaye holud or Eid. The capital is close to nothing: a few cones, a bag and the skill in your hands. It can be started from home, and most of the artists are women. The rates are not small. On 16 September 2026 Sheba.xyz was charging in Dhaka Tk 1,225 to Tk 1,625 per person for festival mehendi, Tk 3,900 to Tk 5,525 for semi-bridal and Tk 4,175 to Tk 5,525 per person for full bridal design. The price turns on how much is covered - one hand, both hands, or hands and feet together. At the same event on the same day the bride's sisters, friends and aunts have it done too, so one booking often yields several jobs. The work is seasonal: the wedding months and the two Eids are crowded and the rest of the year is quiet. Those who also know beauty work add makeup, saree draping and jewellery setting to the mehedi and earn several times more from the same event.

Unit economics

What you need to start

• A phone and decent light for photographs. In this trade the photographs are the only advertisement, so bad ones cost you bookings.Equipment
• Henna cones, stencils, glitter and stones, brushes and wiping cloths. Cones adulterated with chemical dye must be avoided, because a skin reaction is the artist's liability.Starting stock
• Trade licence from the city corporation or municipality. Many working alone from home never take one, but it is needed once you trade under a name or work with a team: form Tk 10, book Tk 50, standard tax Tk 30, stamp Tk 150-300, licence fee Tk 100-60,000, issued in 3-5 working days.Licence
• The drawing hand: fast, even and accurate lines. A guest's simple design and a bride's dense design are two separate skills, and they are priced separately.Skill
• A steady supplier for cones and styling materials. Good cones run short in season, so they must be bought ahead.Supplier
• A corner of the house is enough, but most of the work happens at the customer's home, so getting about is the bigger question.Workspace

How the work is done

1. 1Train the hand. Practise designs daily on paper and on your own hand - speed and an even line are the real capital in this work.
2. 2Learn two distinct styles: a fast simple design for guests and a dense, elaborate one for the bride. The pricing splits along exactly that line.
3. 3Photograph your own work and put it up on a Facebook page. In this trade customers book from photographs; nothing else advertises it.
4. 4Set the rate list by area covered - one hand, both hands, hands with feet. The online platforms step their prices exactly this way, and it cuts the haggling.
5. 5Use good cones and avoid ones adulterated with chemical dye. A burn or a stain ruins the bride's event, and word of that takes less than a day to travel.
6. 6Take bookings before the season. In the wedding months and the week before Eid several calls land on the same day; without a diary the work slips away.
7. 7Take several jobs from one event. The bride's sisters, friends and relatives all want it done - once you are inside the house, take them all together.
8. 8Add beauty work: makeup, saree draping, jewellery and orna setting. Same house, same day, same journey, several times the money.
9. 9Keep in touch with beauty parlours and wedding planners. In season they cannot cover the bookings with their own artists and call outside ones in.

Sources

• সিটি কর্পোরেশন থেকে ট্রেড লাইসেন্স প্রাপ্তির ধাপ সমূহ

  Collected: 16 Sept 2026

  Supports: Starting capital, Time to first revenue · বাংলাদেশ

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