Fashion e-commerce in Bangladesh

ECDB estimates fashion e-commerce revenue at about US$1.14 billion in 2025, growing 15 to 20% a year, with apparel making up 54% of that and online accounting for 10 to 15% of total fashion retail [1]. Statista forecasts the number of fashion e-commerce users rising to about 12.96 million by 2029, up more than half on 2024 [2]. The country is also the world's second-largest garment exporter, so the fabric, printing and stitching that most brands elsewhere import is a short drive away in Dhaka.

US$1.14 bn

fashion e-commerce revenue, 2025 (ECDB)[1]

54%

of fashion e-commerce revenue is apparel (ECDB)[1]

12.96m

forecast fashion e-commerce users by 2029 (Statista)[2]

• Marketplaces. Daraz carries the widest range; quality depends entirely on the seller behind each listing.
• Facebook and Instagram pages. e-CAB counted over 5 lakh business pages, a large share of them selling clothing, with about 60,000 selling regularly [3]. Most are resellers of imported or wholesale stock.
• Independent brands with their own product. A smaller group that designs or sources its own garments, shoots its own photos and sells under its own name on a website. Menlab is one.
• Large local retailers online. Established high-street names with e-commerce arms, strongest in traditional and formal wear.
• Social shopping apps. Hoppi, CartUp and similar, curating younger brands around video.

Five years ago men's fashion online meant a generic round-neck tee. Today the searches and the orders are fit-specific: oversized, drop-shoulder, boxy, semi-baggy. Gen-Z buyers know the vocabulary and shop by it. Menlab's collection is built around that shift: oversized and drop-shoulder t-shirts, graphic and acid-wash tees, polos, casual and old-money shirts, semi-baggy jeans and trousers. Our blog tracks the trend in streetwear fashion trends in Bangladesh.

• They discover on social and verify on the site. A reel or a post brings them; the size chart, the delivery charge and the return policy close them.
• They pay at the door. Cash on delivery is the default for a first order from any brand.
• They screenshot size charts. And they message on WhatsApp to confirm before ordering.
• They are price-aware, not price-only. A 2024 survey found 34% of online shoppers had experienced quality problems [4]; the ones who have been burned will pay a little more for a visible reason.
• They buy in small, frequent baskets. A tee, then another. Combos and a free-shipping threshold turn one into two.

Ask any clothing seller in Bangladesh what comes back and the answer is size, not quality. The fix is not a generic S/M/L chart but a measured chart per product, with chest and length, and a clear statement of the fit: regular sits close, oversized sits loose on purpose. Menlab adds an assistant that suggests a size from height and weight, which cut the "which size?" messages more than any chart alone.

Photos decide the other half. Supplier catalogue images produce "is it the same as the picture?" messages and refused parcels. Photos of the real stock, in natural light, at the studio, produce orders that get accepted at the door.

1. 01

   Source or make

   Pick fabric and cut, or buy finished stock, and check every piece by hand: weight, stitching, colourfastness.

2. 02

   Shoot

   Photograph the real stock consistently. This is the product page.

3. 03

   List with real information

   Per-product size chart, fabric, fit, delivery charge and return policy on the page.

4. 04

   Sell where people are

   Facebook and Instagram for discovery, the website for the order, marketplaces for reach.

5. 05

   Confirm and ship

   Confirm on WhatsApp, hand to the courier, send the tracking code.

6. 06

   Handle exchanges honestly

   A written window, courier pickup, and a clear rule for custom prints.

Because printing capacity is local, single-piece custom printing is practical in Bangladesh in a way it is not in most markets. Menlab runs a browser-based print studio where a customer designs on the real product and orders a single piece, paying the delivery charge by bKash and the rest at the door. It is a small category today and a fast-growing one. See who makes custom printed t-shirts in Bangladesh.

• The delivery charge question comes before the fabric question. Answer it on the page.
• Exchanges cost less than the trust they buy. A 7-day window is used rarely and cited often.
• Oversized fits need a sentence of explanation or they come back as "too big".
• A named founder and a studio address answer "is this real?" better than any badge.
• Marketplaces bring volume and keep the customer. The website brings less volume and every phone number. Run both, build on one.