Quality	Uniqueness	Service	Low Prices

My Personal Travel Blogs

UPDATED 8/23/10

Update: 8/23/10

BIG NEWS:  Rug Embargo coming soon!!!

In June of 2010, the US government announced that it will introduce a total trade embargo against all Iranian products effective 9/28/10. After that date, no more Iranian made products will be allowed into the US and that of course includes the high end Persian rugs that you see in my website.

As a result of the embargo, I spent a couple of weeks in July overseas purchasing as many rugs as I could muster and have more than doubled my inventory. I have been receiving a lot of questions and e-mails from folks wanting to know what is going to happen once the embargo takes effect and here are the basics:

• It is perfectly fine to purchase Iranian made Persian rugs as long as the rugs are already in the US. The embargo only means that you can not purchase or import them from overseas.

• After 9/28/10 the rug sellers will no longer be able to import Persian rugs made in Iran unless they try to smuggle them in like they did during the last embargo from 1986 through 1999.

• As to what will happen to the prices of the rugs, that is unknown at this stage. If the embargo last for a short time, let say less than 2 years, you should see very little of change from what you see right now since there is plenty of supply already in the US. Many Persian rug sellers like myself purchased a lot of rugs to keep us going for a while. On the other hand, if the embargo drags on like it did in the past, you will see steady price increases as the supply dwindles.

• At this time, you will probably notice a 10-20% increase in the prices of rugs due to the fact that many rug sellers had to buy large quantities of rugs on credit, which adds to the cost of the rugs.

• The recession has hammered the Persian rug business like most home furnishing businesses and many rug stores have either downsized, closed their doors, or slashed their prices to keep afloat. Only time will tell how the embargo will shape the Persian rug business in the US.

• I will update this post again in about 6 months after I get a better feel from what is happening. As always, feel free to let me know if you got any questions and best wishes.

Take care,
Mike

Update: 8/10/09

Same old thing, different day!!
Had already got a e-mails from folks wanting to know what is happening with the rug prices in 2009, so here it goes.
I spend a couple of weeks overseas in July and the bottom line is that the prices have come down a bit compared to 2008, but not as much as I had expected. With the global recession taking a big bite out of the rug industry, I had every expectation to see a big price drop, which has not happened thanks to a slowdown in the rug production. There are simply a lot less rugs being made (especially the high end ones) and even though the demand has dropped off significantly, the economic and political situation in Iran does not allow for the big drop in prices. The prices have dropped about 10-15% in the last year, but that is mainly due to the rise in the US dollar.

Take care,
Mike

Update: 12/1/08

Finally, some good news!!
Once again, I want to share with you my latest findings after returning from my trip overseas.
Since 2003, the prices of Persian rugs have more than doubled and there is finally some good news to report, which I have been hoping for some time now.  With the current global economies fallen of the cliffs, our US dollar seems to have come back to life,  which has had a direct impact on the prices of Persian rugs.  For the first time in 5 years, I have been able to lower my prices by around 15% and I am hopeful that this trend will not reverse.

Please note though that the lower prices are mainly due to the rise in the US dollar and not the slowdown in the varies economies.  Even though the Persian rug market as a whole has slowed down, so has the rug production in Iran and their inflation of around 25% is still keeping up the prices.  My plan is to travel overseas again in 4 months and by then I should have a better picture of whether the price reduction is temporary or permanent.

Take care,
Mike

Update: 1/7/08

One word sums it all up: UGLY!!!
Got back from my trip a couple of days and as always, I'm completely jet-lagged.
Last year, I thought I had seen it all and once again I have been completely wrong about the prices of the high quality Persian rugs, especially the Tabriz and Qom pieces. In 2007, the Tabriz and Qom rugs have gone up in price about 30%, yes, that is 30%. Nain and Isfahan rugs have gone up about 10%. The main problem continues to be the high inflation in Iran, officially at 15% but in reality closer to 25%, and the continued weakness of our US dollar.

The prices in Tabriz and Qom are going up higher simply because more and more folks are giving up the rug business altogether. In places like Khoj, which is a small village where the Mahi (fish) design Tabriz rugs are made, the production is now about half of what it was just 5 years ago and as a result, the prices are just shooting up. The same is happening in Qom as well.  Prices in Nain and Isfahan are going up, but due to their traditional designs, there are still plenty of rugs to choose from, and therefor the prices will not climb as quickly.

My goal was to purchase about 30-40 rugs and I only ended up with 17 instead. I will be going overseas again in a few months and will update you again as soon as I return. Take a look at the 3 Tabriz rugs further down and you can see how the prices have changed.

Below is an much more detailed article about the overall situation and I will update this page again after my next trip.

Take care,
Mike

Update: 4/17/07

Got back from my trip overseas last week and just recovered from a bad case of a cold and jet-lag. The price of Persian rugs is still going up and it appears that the inflation rate in Iran is stabilizing at around 15%, but the weak dollar is having a huge impact as it has for last 3 years. As of mid April, the US dollar is approaching a new record low against the Euro and it is already at a 15 year low against the English Pound and many other currency. Do not expect any relief any time soon.

Below is an much more detailed article about the overall situation and I will update this page again after my next trip.

Take care,
Mike