Female Entrepreneurs amid COVID-19

After Bangladesh went under a nation-wide lockdown, online sales of daily essentials and health products started booming. But online retailers of fashion, IT services, cosmetics, and other imported products took a hard hit.

A large percentage of these retailers are women who operate their businesses through Facebook. According to a recent study by the Brac Institute of Governance and Development (BIGD), Barc University, more than 90% of the online entrepreneurs are losing revenue.

% of respondents who lost revenue	businesses are losing revenue by (%)
0-10	2.98
11-20	3.88
21-30	6.8
31-40	7.77
41-50	5.83
51-60	10.68
61-70	10.68
71-80	12.62
81-90	13.59
90-100	18.45
Not sure	6.8

 

Many of them are trying to reduce the loss by cancelling orders, while others are selling their stock at a discount.

Effect	Yes	No
Giving discounts	12	88
Cancelling orders	48	52
Laying-off employees	9	91
No change	15	85

Surprisingly, the majority of these business owners, despite the loss, are optimistic about overcoming this crisis.

level of confidence	% of entrepreneurs
Very confident	13.93
Confident	45.9
Not confident	9.84
Doubtful	30.33

But to do so, they will need help.

Yet, these businesses remain ineligible for the government’s stimulus package for not having formal registration or a trade license. The majority of the entrepreneurs believe that if they are granted a share of the stimulus package, it would help them save their businesses. However, a significant number of them do not know about the package or how it would benefit them.

perception	as perceived by entrepreneurs (%)
Beneficial	30.33
Maybe beneficial	34.43
Not beneficial	13.93
Don't know	21.31

If things do not improve for these online businesses, most entrepreneurs will have to shut down or lay-off their employees.

number of employees	people are employed by
0	34.43
1-5	41.8
6-20	19.67
20+	4.1

This can lead to a surge in potential unemployment.

Moreover, as over half the entrepreneurs depend on these businesses as their only source of income, the economic empowerment and independence of these entrepreneurs will also be in jeopardy.

 

*This is an experimental study page created for interactive data visualization. It does not follow the typical study page format. For the full interactive experience, view the page on your computer.

Source - https://bigd.bracu.ac.bd/study/female-entrepreneurs-amid-covid-19/