Karastan Rugs

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History of Karastan

Karastan is a brand well recognized in America for providing luxurious rugs of high-quality. The label has gained such popularity over the years that a few of their rug collections are even considered as collector items. However, it took years of dedication and numerous brilliant ideas before Karastan became a household name. It all started in 1920 when the founder of the Chicago-based Marshall Field & Company department store was searching for area rug suppliers for his store. While conducting a market research, he spotted a high demand in the country for machine-made Oriental rugs. To cater to this demand, Field set up a factory in North Carolina for area rugs. The first ever Karastan area rug was created in 1928.

Though Karastan rugs was slowly gaining popularity, it was nowhere near the vision Marshall Field had for the brand. In 1930s, Field devised a marketing move that changed his life forever: he displayed the area rug line in the World’s Fair in Chicago. With millions of people present to witness the rug, it wasn’t a surprise when Karastan became a renowned name in the world of interior decor.

However, the reason behind Karastan’s popularity wasn’t just smart advertising, it was the formation of world class rugs of great quality and design. In the 1940s, Karastan introduced the Kara-Loc weaving method of producing carpets, and in the 2000s the company introduced a new fiber called Triextra under the brand SmartStrand.

Today, the world might have evolved, but the demand for Karastan’s detailed Oriental rugs still remains the same. There are very few brands that are able to stand the test the of time and retain a positive brand image – Karastan is one of them.

Fun facts about Karastan

Karastan rugs are made using quality New Zealand wool and colorfast dyes.
The Karastan SmartStrand carpet is known for being luxuriously soft and extremely durable.
The artisan’s at Karastan have over 30 years of experience.
In 1928, Karastan became popular in the US for introducing heirloom quality machine made rugs that were reminiscent of Persian rugs.
In 1933, Karastan displayed a rug at the World’s Fair that was walked on by 5 million people. The rug was covered by footsteps by the end of the fair. Half of the carpet was cleaned only to show how well Karastan carpets was at handling stains. That particular rug is known as the ‘Wonder Rug of America”.
The number 717 Kirman-style rug pattern produced in 1937 is still the best-selling rug of Karastan.
In the 1970s, Karastan partnered with a woman’s fashion designer to launch the Eloquence design rug collection for high-end consumers. This collection is sold even today.