The countrys start-ups confront various types of structural, managerial, financial, infrastructural, marketing, and social problems. The extent of the problems faced by SMEs differs according to their size, location, and market linkage. Some of the problems such as financial, infrastructural, and political unrest are considered to be acute as they have a substantial impact on business activity and hinder their competitively. The difficulties are illustrated below- Lack of Sufficient Financial Support: Small entrepreneurs require various types of financial support to cover their expenses, such as initial capital to cover preliminary expenses, working capital to cover running expenses, reserve capital to meet expenses not only for unexpected contingencies but also for personal and family maintenance. In most cases, these enterprises receive working capital from the financial institutions, but startup capital, which is crucial to cover preliminary expenses, is often not supported by financial institutions.Poor legal and regulatory framework: Although various policies in support of SMEs are currently in operation, there is a problem of ambiguity, non-transparency, and inconsistency in these policies, which ultimately reduces entrepreneurs confidence in the legal and regulatory framework of the country.

Poor infrastructure: Poor physical infrastructure increases the cost of production and reduces the competitiveness of SME products. Major problems related to infrastructure include frequent power failures and poor transport facilities, which seriously hamper the smooth production and delivery of products. Small enterprises suffer more from frequent power failures because of lesser captive power generation facilities in their production unitsLack of skilled workers: In order to enhance productivity and manufacture high end products, entrepreneurs often demand an adequate supply of skilled workers. An upgrade of technologies, important for manufacturing better products, always requires skilled workers. Huge public investment is necessary to develop human resourcesPolitical unrest: Political structures remain confrontational in the country. Personal and political enmity between rivals, frequent hartal (strikes), and the lack of respect for elementary principles of democratic governance has become the principal characteristics of the countrys political system. A series of prolonged hartal affect the socio-economic and political conditions of the country. The average cost of hartal during the 1990s to the Bangladesh economy was 3-4 percent of GDP (UNDP, 2005). Absence of a favorable social/cultural environment: The concept of entrepreneurship is not native to every culture or society. Starting a business requires courage: the courage to assume the risks of putting money into ideas and the courage to take a leap into an unknown future. Throughout the world millions of entrepreneurs display such courage. But the fear of failure produced by the highly volatile socio-politico-economic conditions of Bangladesh has deepened into the minds of potential entrepreneurs.

Poor quality and standards: Bangladesh has limited capacity to ensure the quality of products and services to consumers not only in the domestic market but also in international markets. There is no national quality policy or adequate support system that provides assistance to all enterprises to understand the principles of quality and to develop quality consciousness in business behavior.

Inefficient marketing practices: Entrepreneurships in Bangladesh, especially the small enterprises, do not have enough marketing capabilities or networks. An overwhelming majority of small firms do not have resources to invest in marketing.

Lack of entrepreneurship and management skills: Many owner-managers and entrepreneurs often lack wider managerial skills, which hinder their long-term success. Strategic planning, medium to long-term vision, marketing, commitment to quality, knowledge of quality systems, communicating in foreign languages, cash-flow management, and information technology are a few critical elements of management required to meet the challenges of the market economy, especially in the global market environment.

Challenges faced by women entrepreneurs: Women are handicapped in the current centralized wholesale market set-up controlled by men. Home-based women entrepreneurs suffer from a lack of access to inputs and services like credit, input supplies, markets and new technology that could increase their productivity. Women often lack the legal knowledge to protect their industries and often fall victim to illegal threats or criminal offences. Despite all the constraints and challenges mentioned in the previous section, there are start-ups specially SMEs in all sectors that manage to overcome these problems successfully and operate efficiently. The reasons for their success are manifold: the successful exploration of markets at the bottom of the pyramid, access to financial support on favorable terms and conditions, the use of marketing techniques to tap into domestic and international markets, and the extensive application of modern technology.