Challenges faced by small enterprises in Bangladesh: the case of JNA Pulp paper business

ABSTRACT

This practitioner paper presents the case of a small paper business named JNA Pulp, initiated with the vision to provide high-quality imported paper to the market. The paper discusses several hurdles faced by the company which eventually pushed the owner to contemplate shutting down the business in the first quarter of 2020. With the rise of COVID-19, it was clear that considering the stance of the business in local market, survival would be impossible. Using the Fishbone analysis, the paper analyses the problems that lead to the closure of this business in April 2020 and further evaluates the strategies that could possibly contribute towards the survival of small businesses in the domestic market.

KEYWORDS:

• Bangladesh
• JNA Pulp
• small- and medium-sized enterprises
• paper business
• Fishbone analysis

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 For the purpose of this case, we interviewed JNA Pulp’s owner, Mr Jamal Hasan to learn about his business and experience of operating a small company in Bangladesh. The data and information he provided enabled us to gain an insight into the challenges the business had to bear.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the InterResearch, Dhaka, Bangladesh (2019).