Photo: Collected
BD Lepachu Limited, a wholly US-owned company, is set to build a factory to make wigs (educational hair mannequin heads) at Ishwardi EPZ with an investment of USD 5 million.
To this end, the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) signed a land lease agreement with the company at the BEPZA Complex in Dhaka today.
BEPZA Member (Engineering) Abdullah Al Mamun signed the agreement on behalf of BEPZA, while the company’s General Manager Mr He Zhi Long signed on behalf of BD Lepachu Limited.
BEPZA Executive Chairman Major General Mohammad Moazzem Hossain, ndc, afwc, psc, G, MPhil, witnessed the signing ceremony along with senior officials of the organisation.
Under the agreement, the company will produce 1 lakh educational hair mannequin heads a year, including the Original Series, Cap Series, Premium Series and Slip-on Series.
The products have been designed specially for international cosmetology academies and salons. They will be supplied to world-renowned beauty brands such as L’Oréal, Wella, Kao and Henkel.
The company is expected to earn about USD 7 million in exports a year. It will create jobs for a total of 300 people, 295 of them Bangladeshis. The investment adds another milestone to BEPZA’s efforts to diversify the export basket by attracting investment in non-traditional and value-added products beyond conventional readymade garments.
The BEPZA executive chairman welcomed the investing company. He thanked the company for choosing Bangladesh as its investment destination and for placing its trust in BEPZA.
He reiterated BEPZA’s commitment to attracting investment in diverse sectors from the United States and other countries. He also assured the company of all necessary support and cooperation, from setting up the factory to running the business smoothly.
Among others, BEPZA Executive Director (Security) Lt Col Md Mohsin Hasan, BSP, psc, Artillery; Executive Director (Enterprise Services) Mosihuddin Bin Mesbah; Executive Director (Public Relations) ASM Anwar Parvez and other senior BEPZA officials, along with representatives of BD Lepachu Limited, were present at the event.
As of October 2026, 27 industrial enterprises are in operation at Ishwardi EPZ and 8 more are being implemented. Goods worth a total of USD 2,371.73 million have been exported from the EPZ so far. Actual investment stands at USD 287 million, and 20,928 Bangladeshi nationals have been employed.
Four companies at Ishwardi EPZ currently make caps, wigs and cosmetics products. This has further strengthened the EPZ’s position as an emerging hub for diversified manufacturing beyond readymade garments.
District angle
According to an Ittefaq report of 19 September, Ishwardi EPZ in Pabna was established in 2001; over more than two decades it has become one of the partners in the economic transformation of the north-western region.
Ittefaq reported on 9 May that tension broke out at Ishwardi EPZ that day in protest at a rise in workers’ transport fares, disrupting traffic for several hours; BEPZA authorities later held an emergency meeting with workers’ representatives and assured them the demands would be considered.
At a glance
The same Ittefaq report said BEPZA, established in 1981, currently runs eight EPZs and one BEPZA economic zone.
Sources
Original report: Bangladesh Pratidin
Background sources: Ittefaq, 19 September 2026; Ittefaq, 9 May 2026
