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All businesses

Filter by capital, district and kind of work. Every number uses the same units, so you can compare businesses side by side.

35 businesses

Retail & wholesale

Toy and gift shop

Retailing toys and gift items. In September 2026 online toy prices ran from Tk 58 to Tk 3,815. Imported toys carry 25 percent customs duty, and most of the year's selling happens in the few weeks around Eid and Pohela Boishakh.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳14 lakh
People
1 – 5
First income
3 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Second-hand book shop

Buying used books and selling them on. In the Purana Paltan market in Dhaka used books went at roughly Tk 20-30 a book in May 2024. In Nilkhet shop rents ran from Tk 12,000 to Tk 50,000 a month on advances of Tk 2 lakh to Tk 8 lakh.

Capital
৳2.5 lakh – ৳9.5 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
3 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Pet food and supplies shop

A shop selling imported cat and dog food, litter and accessories. Dry food runs Tk 487 to Tk 1,900 a kg (21-09-2026). Customs duty on pet food is 25%, and demand is still mostly confined to Dhaka.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳10 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Electrical goods shop

A retail shop selling cable, switches, sockets, holders, lamps and fans. Fifty of the 315 products on BSTI's mandatory certification list are electrical, and selling uncertified cable brings a fine and a sealed shop.

Capital
৳2.5 lakh – ৳15 lakh
People
1 – 5
First income
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Paint and hardware shop

A retail shop selling paint, cement, rod, pipe, sanitary ware and tools. On 12-03-2026 a 50 kg bag of cement was Tk 475-520 and 60-grade rod Tk 87,000-88,500 a tonne, and these prices move week to week.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳20 lakh
People
1 – 6
First income
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Optical shop (spectacles)

Buying frames and lenses and assembling spectacles over the counter. A complete ordinary pair retails at Tk 649 to Tk 5,400 (online prices, 21 Sep 2026). No BSTI certificate is needed; the trade licence is the only paper.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳15 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Wholesale medicine business

Wholesaling medicines to pharmacies. DGDA licenses it separately - Tk 10,000 new, Tk 5,000 renewal, valid two years - but no pharmacist is required.

Capital
৳5 lakh – ৳50 lakh
People
2 – 10
First income
42 – 120 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Fishing gear shop

Selling hooks, rods, reels, nets and fish medicine. Rods Tk 455-1,552, reels Tk 641-6,705. Current jal and China duari nets are illegal - stocking them means seizure and a mobile court.

Capital
৳1.2 lakh – ৳6 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
20 – 50 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Sports goods shop

Retailing bats, balls, jerseys and rackets. Children's bats Tk 109-511, English willow Tk 2,250-3,190, footballs Tk 484-1,200. Demand follows schools, clubs and the tournament season.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳9 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
25 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Children's clothing shop

Retailing clothes for children aged 0-12. Panjabi sets Tk 260-985, frocks Tk 150-650. Children outgrow clothes, so stock turns over far faster than in an adult boutique.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳7 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
20 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Agricultural machinery parts shop

Spare parts for power tillers, shallow engines and sprayers. Machine sales fell 80-90 per cent when the subsidy was suspended in June 2024, but the machines already in the fields still need parts.

Capital
৳3 lakh – ৳15 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
30 – 75 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Tyre and battery shop

Selling and fitting tyres and batteries for cars and motorcycles. Car tyres Tk 11,000-29,000, bike tyres Tk 1,750-15,650, bike batteries Tk 1,050-1,950.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳15 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
20 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Shoe and bag shop

Retailing shoes, sandals, school bags and belts. School shoes Tk 559-1,999 and school bags Tk 279-996; unsold odd sizes are the biggest loss in this trade.

Capital
৳2 lakh – ৳9 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
15 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Gold and jewellery shop

Buying and selling gold and silver at the BAJUS-fixed rate. 22-carat was Tk 19,970 a gram; the shop earns from a 6 percent making charge and a 15-17 percent weight deduction on old gold.

Capital
৳50 lakh – ৳2.5 crore
People
2 – 6
First income
30 – 90 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Stone and sand trading

Buying river stone and sand and selling it into construction. A 100-cubic-foot tractor load costs Tk 8,000 at the Panchagarh pit head while Dhaka pays Tk 123-125 a cubic foot for local three-quarter stone, and the gap is freight and lease tolls.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳15 lakh
People
2 – 20
First income
30 – 365 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Betel nut trading

Buying betel nut from households and selling at the hat, or soaking and drying it to sell later. In Lakshmipur in October 2025 a kaun fetched Tk 2,500-2,800 and a pon Tk 150-250.

Capital
৳1 lakh – ৳25 lakh
People
1 – 8
First income
1 – 240 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Fruit wholesale arot

Unloading truckloads of fruit and selling by the crate to retail shops. Badamtoli turns over about Tk 40 crore a day, and opening a crate can show 25-33 percent rotten.

Capital
৳5 lakh – ৳40 lakh
People
2 – 10
First income
30 – 90 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Onion and garlic storage trading

Buying cheap at harvest, storing, and selling when prices rise. But 25-30 percent of the country's onion rots for want of storage, and local onion fell 30 percent in twelve months.

Capital
৳70k – ৳4.7 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
90 – 250 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Model pharmacy

A DGDA-accredited pharmacy. 300 sq ft, air-conditioning, a pharmacy-grade fridge and a Grade A pharmacist are compulsory; the drug licence runs two years.

Capital
৳5 lakh – ৳25 lakh
People
2 – 5
First income
45 – 180 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Vegetable retail and supply

Buy at the wholesale arat at dawn, sell retail all day. On 14 Sept 2026 in Dhaka, potato was Tk 15-20 wholesale against Tk 25-30 retail, and onion Tk 24-42 against Tk 45-55.

Capital
৳10k – ৳1.5 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
1 – 15 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Clothing and boutique shop

A shop selling fabric and ready-made clothes. Cotton runs Tk 300-700 a yard in Dhaka, and most of the year's takings arrive in the last ten days of Ramadan.

Capital
৳1 lakh – ৳8 lakh
People
1 – 5
First income
15 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Seed, fertiliser and feed dealership

A farm input shop selling seed, fertiliser, pesticide and feed. The fertiliser margin is fixed by government at Tk 2 a kg today, rising to Tk 3 from 1 July 2027.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳25 lakh
People
1 – 5
First income
30 – 180 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Stationery and book shop

A stationery and book shop with photocopying. A 204-page exercise book is Tk 68, a 300-page one Tk 169, and white paper Tk 34-40 a dista. Textbooks come free from the government, so the season's money is in exercise books and photocopies.

Capital
৳1.5 lakh – ৳8 lakh
People
1 – 4
First income
15 – 45 days
Editorial estimate
Retail & wholesale

Potato storage trading

Buying potatoes at harvest, storing them cold and selling later. Rent is capped at Tk 6.00/kg, but in 2026 a 60 kg sack cost Tk 1,150-1,300 and sold for Tk 800-870.

Capital
৳1.2 lakh – ৳6.5 lakh
People
1 – 3
First income
150 – 270 days
Editorial estimate