EASTERN ORIENTAL SPANS OLD AND
NEW TRADITIONS IN WHOLESALING

By Janet Herlihy

SECAUCUS, NJ --  Eastern Oriental Rug Co. (EORC) is a family owned importer that  has created an identity that embraces the latest wholesale and retail trends, while maintaining traditional family values.
 

  "EORC is essentially a hybrid between the old style Oriental rug dealer that stocks a lot of one-of-a-kind product and sells to the small specialty rug shops, and a
modern low-end programmed-goods company that sells to major retailers,€VbCrLf said Benny Nabavian, a company principal.

The manufacturer, importer and wholesaler of oriental rugs and handmade carpets was established in 1979 by two brothers,  Khalil  and Bahram Nabavian. The company is now in its second generation of family management.

The company's principals are two father-son teams: Khalil and Bahram Nabavian and Hushang and Benny Nabavian. Other family members involved in the business are Ray, Khalil's daughter, and Pooya, Hushang's younger son.

"Everyone is too modest for titles. Except me,€VbCrLf
laughed Benny Nabavian, acting as company spokesman. Officially, however, Khalil, now semi-retired,  is the president of EORC.

For the rest of the team, getting the job done seems far more important than titles. In terms of responsibilities, Ray and Pooya do the data entry, invoicing, bills and administrative operations.  Benny and Bahram make the buying and selling decisions. Bahram handles more marketing strategy, while Benny heads up the buying and selling.
   
EORC's  down-to-earth approach is working. "Despite
all the pessimism in the media and particularly our
industry, our revenue is right on target with a modest
increase over 2005,€VbCrLf noted Nabavian.

"Our clients consist of department stores, specialty
stores, interior designers, and decorators from all
over the world,€VbCrLf he added. "By offering excellent
service, quality merchandise and great values, we
have kept our clients faithful for over 20 years.€VbCrLf
   
Wide Range of Styles
The company's collections  includes a wide range of patterns, from classic Persian and European designs to fashion forward contemporary styles.

While the EORC line includes rugs from Pakistan, Iran and China, the majority of its products are hand made in India.

 "Even though we stock plenty of goods from Iran
and Pakistan, we have a very good understanding with
our Indian suppliers.  Their products seem to fit best
in our current business model. And the quick product
development is just what the market requires,€VbCrLf said Nabavian.

There are approximately 200 styles usually in stock
at any given time with an average of three to four
sizes in each style. All inventory  is kept in a
10,000 sq. ft.  warehouse/showroom at the ORRA building in Secaucus,  where the company has been based for many years.  More than 90% of orders are shipped the same day.

In recent years, the greatest change for EORC has been
a move to add entry-level programmed goods to its
medium and higher-end one-of-a-kind collections.

 "We started doing entry level rugs about three
years ago and found that some of our bigger customers
sell more of those than our more expensive traditional
items,€VbCrLf said Nabavian.

"We don't handle any machine-made rugs at the moment, but would like to in the near future. Hand-tufteds have
had the biggest increase compared to the rest of our
items in terms of square footage,€VbCrLf he added.
 
Retail prices ranges from approximately $185 to its finest  $2,160 in 5x8 and 6x9 sizes. With such a wide variety of goods, the challenge is keeping up with the color and design trends. "The trends change much faster than
they used to, but luckily manufacturing time has also shrunk,€VbCrLf said Nabavian.
   
Being able to anticipate market demands is key. "Last
year we did very well with contemporaries, but the
traditional designs seem to be coming back this year,€VbCrLf
Nabavian observed.

 "In color, we try to keep a balance of the basics-ivory, red and black-as our main colors, with blues, greens and golds as accents.  We are adding some browns for next season. Most of the new designs are created from a combination of our ideas with feedback from our suppliers.€VbCrLf

Internet Growth
EORC now sees a great deal of growth potential in its
Internet business.  "We supply Internet
retailers with very competitive pricing and the growth
of the internet-savvy buyer translates into volume for
us,€VbCrLf said Nabavian. "The difference is more work for us
in terms of selling one rug at a time and being more
organized in terms of inventory management,€VbCrLf he added.


Targeting Customers, Not Market Participation

While many rug importers are stretched and
stressed trying to choose and attend the "right€VbCrLf trade
shows, EORC serves its customers one at a time. 

"We don't participate in any shows.  We've
never been able to justify the expense and the effort
that goes into the shows.  We are much more successful
at targeting individual customers. And also we benefit
from a great location that consistently brings new
traffic for us,€VbCrLf said Nabavian.

The quest for the perfect license agreement is
another area EORC has not pursued. "No licensing for
EORC,€VbCrLf he noted. "Just never crossed our minds. Maybe
we should look at it.€VbCrLf

Future plans for EORC are to expand its customer
base as the product line grows. "We find that one of
the keys to maintaining growth is constantly having
new products, compared to the past when the product
shelf life was much longer,€VbCrLf  said Nabavian.

 8.22.06