Looking back on the last few years in business, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we needed somewhere to go. Sitting on the couch with a glass of wine and scrolling on our devices was a mindless activity. You could search for anything – from shoes and refrigerators to cars and homes – with just the click of a button. Occasionally, I would get on websites for e-commerce rugs priced as-is, but the hand-knotted sites were the worst. Unlike refrigerators or shoes, hand-knotted rugs can’t be compared by going to a manufacturer’s website and evaluating specs and photos. Each rug is an individual piece of art, often woven by more than one person. For a rug to be considered an authentic oriental rug, it must meet specific criteria. For one, it must be made entirely by hand. It must also be constructed of 100% natural materials and made in the Rug Belt – the area that travels from Morocco, across North Africa, through the Middle East, Central Asia, and Northern India. A rug that doesn’t meet these criteria is not an oriental rug – it is an area rug, no matter what it looks like.
Now, in these countries, the art of haggling is alive and well. Customers and vendors alike EXPECT to haggle over everything, from the price of a fish to the cost of a rug. If you Google “haggling,” you will find millions of articles, blogs, and videos about the process. In these countries, haggling is expected and even enjoyed – a skill to be honed. The vendors know it and mark their merchandise accordingly. But the United States is not one of those countries. Haggling is not something the average American citizen even has on their mind. No one is walking into a grocery store and asking the manager to sell them a loaf of bread for a lower price. So, let’s go back to the e-commerce rug websites. We all get it…who doesn’t love a great deal? But the adage – if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is – is a phrase to keep in mind.
For instance, I was on a large hand-knotted rug website with many glowing reviews. One of the rugs was smaller than 9” x 12”. The retail price was $30,747. Yikes! That price was then marked out with the “sale” price listed as $9,499, a savings of 70%. Let’s do some math. A 9” x 12” rug has an area of 108 square feet. If we divide $30,747 by 108, we get almost $285 per square foot! I’ve seen some beautiful rugs in the 25 years I’ve been in the rug business, but I’ve NEVER seen one that would make me charge a customer $285 per square foot. If we do that same math on the “sale” price of $9,499, we get $88 per square foot. This is much closer to the retail price of a finely woven 9” x 12” rug.
The natural inclination is to think that you are crazy lucky, getting a $30,747 rug for “only” $9,499! But that’s not what’s happening. What’s happening is you’re getting a $9,499 rug for $9,499. Or you’re getting a $6,000 rug for $9,499. How do you know? If you aren’t a rug expert, the only thing you can do is hope that the seller is running their business with honesty and integrity. And let’s face it – no company would stay in business if they regularly sold their goods at 70% off the actual retail price.
Negotiating goods isn’t typical or expected in the United States. A flea market may invite haggling, but a brick-and-mortar store running its business honestly should be pricing its goods at a fair price that reflects the rug’s value. If you ever see a website or company where the rugs are all marked down a tremendous amount, take that as a red flag and look elsewhere! Researching rugs and finding an honest and genuinely supportive seller is essential. We suggest shopping locally at a store with over 50 years of experience that stands behind their products and gives great customer service for an overall better experience. If you’re local to the Evansville area, we would love to invite you into The Rug Merchant to show you what makes us different!