STRAIGHT OUTTA TEHRAN

From the Grand Bazaar to the Dallas Design District

BY ALAENA HOSTETTER | PHOTOGRAPHY BY HOLGER OBENAUS

Arsin Rug Gallery brought its 100-plus years of fine rug experience to the Dallas Design District when the three-generation- old company moved there years ago. It recently relocated to the Dallas Design Center, rebranding from its former moniker, Slocum Rug Gallery.

“We felt that our product would do well being in a highend location,” says proprietor James Arsin, the youngest member in the Arsin rug dynasty and the great-grandson of the original founder. “We also wanted to put our family name on the new showroom to draw on the reputation we have worked to build over the past few years. Many people in the Design Center have worked with me and my brothers, and will instantly recognize our new name.”

The family company, now run by Arsin and his brothers, was opened in 1910 in Tehran’s famous Grand Bazaar by their great-grandfather. It began as a rug manufacturer and exporter, and eventually opened a showroom in the United States to expand its reach.

“All of my uncles, my father’s brothers, are in the business as well,” Arsin says. “Most of them still work out of Tehran’s bazaar. My brothers and I all have different roles. My oldest brother works closely with wholesalers, and my middle brother manufactures rugs in Iran. The Arsin family has devoted three generations to establishing a reputation for carrying the finest quality rugs in the market, both abroad and now in the United States.”

And, whether it’s overseas in Iran or locally in Dallas, the Arsin family business has thrived on being part of the local fabric of its neighborhood.

“I like the sense of community the Design Center has. The showrooms around us are highend, professional and very well established,” says Arsin. “Before we even began moving in, our neighbors were so friendly and welcoming.”

He says his new neighbors would stop by the former Slocum Rug Gallery and ask when the Arsins were moving into their new location and if they could help in any way. Symbiotic relationships like these are what prompted the move more than anything.

“We decided we wanted to work more closely with designers and establish partnerships with other businesses related to ours, like furniture showrooms, to display our rugs,” he says. “It’s helpful for clients to be able to see the different ways these rugs will be used—our rugs are versatile and can be placed in a variety of settings.”

The family brand specializes in hand-knotted new, vintage and antique rugs from all over the world, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Persia, Turkey, Nepal, England, Germany, Egypt, Armenia and Azerbaijan, which amounts to more than 5,000 unique pieces in the store’s collection.

That’s a huge inventory to keep up with so, for ease of use, Arsin had every rug in the collection photo-catalogued and posted to the company’s website, which is searchable by size and color. A select number of rugs will also be viewable in Arsin Rug Gallery, or they can be brought to the showroom from a storage facility down the street.

Arsin Rug Gallery also offers cleaning, repairs, size alteration, delivery and installation to give customers a true one-stop rug experience.

“We have a very professional team that helps us to clean, repair or resize any rug,” he says. “People feel invested in the rugs they choose and want to have a place they can rely on to maintain their rugs.”

True to the mentality that has made the brand a multinational and multigenerational success, Arsin wants customers to know they can count on the Arsin name to cover all their bases. He says, “We want to guarantee the product and service beyond the sale.”

Alaena Hostetter is a Dallas-based journalist who writes about all of her favorite things: art, design, culture, music, entertainment and food.

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