About Little-Persia

Little-Persia rug gallery was opened to the public in April 2003 by the owner, a software engineer, Dr Reza Cheshmehdoost. His passion for rugs began by a rug gifted to him by his father fifteen years earlier. The gift on floor of his study became fine threads tied to a distant homeland and the memory of his father who had given him a love for these beautiful rugs, each of which is a little piece of history in itself.

The hobby of collecting rugs for over 15 years was transformed into a business as the gallery doors were opened to the public. As a highly respected rug specialist Little-Persia has the finest range of carpets in Scotland with over 1,200 pieces from Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey and India. Reza has an established network of businesses connections around the world for sourcing the very best rugs on the market.

The Showpiece

Despite its origins in ancient Asia, the Persian rug is now the showpiece of many British homes. In a traditional house a Persian rug brings warmth and beauty to the living spaces. In a contemporary interior it compliments wooden floors, modern furniture, accessories and light fittings. Examples of Persian Rugs placed in modern as well as traditional homes can be seen in our Interior Design page.

With their subtly brilliant colours and wonderful patterns, handmade Persian carpets add pleasure and warmth to people's lives in residential and office surroundings. A Persian rug can also be a financial asset, its value increases with age, making each purchase a worthwhile investment to be passed down the generations.

As a result of their popularity, the market is flooded with imitations, and for the general public it has become increasingly difficult to distinguish authentic Persian rugs from the fakes on offer. Furthermore, some rug traders sell rugs as Persian when in fact their origin is a neighbouring country, while the rug may still be of a good quality the description is misleading. These risks are removed at Little-Persia, Scotland's leading Persian & Oriental rug specialist.

Traditional and Contemporary

People from all over the UK visit Little-Persia’s rug gallery and our online catalogue because we offer the widest selection of original Persian and Oriental rugs at excellent value; our range includes antique and new carpets, traditional and contemporary designs, large and small sized rugs in normal shapes as well as runners and circular rugs.

Stringent Selection Criteria

Little-Persia selects its rugs on the basis of stringent criteria based on originality and craftsmanship. Using our experience and knowledge we also look at the weaver's choice of materials, including wool, silk and cotton, and the dyes used to colour the yarn before weaving starts. We determine the materials, the dye, the design and structure before bringing the rugs to our showroom.

A Reliable Trader

Little-Persia is a reliable trader who provides expert advice and a wide choice of rugs with value for money and efficient delivery. Reza’s dream would be to place an authentic Persian rug in every home in the UK. He passionately believes a home with a Persian carpet is one with style, warmth and comfort; moreover he wishes everyone to experience the magic which made him a Persian rug collector all those years ago.

In the Press

Little-Persia has regular features in the Scottish broadsheets, some of these can be found here.

Staff

As a specialist trader Little-Persia has a staff of just two. Reza Cheshmehdoost, the founder of the company has been involved with Persian rugs his whole life and in the business for 20 years. Ryan Malone joined Little-Persia as a student in 2006 as a Marketing Assistant and has learned more and more about the rugs as time went by.

Persian & Oriental

Persian rugs (from Iran) are considered to be the best handmade rugs available anywhere in the world and we are very proud of our extensive range, however, Oriental rugs from India, Turkey and Afghanistan also offer excellent quality and provide value that may not be possible to procure from Iran today. The price of rugs in Iran has increased exponentially in the past five years as the trade has become less mainstream. It has become increasingly difficult to source rugs that are affordable for ourselves and for our customers. This is due to inflation rates in Iran of 25%, increasing transportation costs and the weakness of the pound. It is estimated that a high-end rug would cost around three times as much to source today than it would have only five years ago. Luckily, Little-Persia has built up a broad selection of Persian rugs before the cost of importing rugs from Iran soared. Although good rugs from Iran are still considered the ultimate we feel Oriental and Turkish rugs offer excellent durability and design and often equal and even out-shine their Iranian counterparts. Each country has their own strengths, for example in Iran they attempted to mimic Ziegler rugs which are currently made in Afghanistan but could not achieve the same texture or colour. The same applies for Khal Mohammadi rugs made in Afghanistan. It is important to note that all rug weaving countries can produce excellent carpets, but they also produce poor ones. Origin does not provide a guarantee of quality only an indication of potential value.

For the sake of collectors who may only want to buy a rug from a certain country (e.g. Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey or India), or a particular region within them (e.g. Tabriz, Kazak or Kashan) Little-Persia clearly label and communicate the origin of all our rugs. More details on rug weaving cities and regions can be found on our Rug Origins Guide.