Edina Oriental Rug Dealer Closing Up Shop After 35 Years

After more than 35 years of slinging Persian Rugs from his Edina store, Kurosh Amrami is preparing to close his shop's doors one last time.

Amrami will be shutting down for good on Saturday, Sept. 8, when the business will be forced to vacate its current home. It's a bittersweet time for the Amrami family, which has operated the Edina rug business for two generations.

"Some of these antique rugs were hand-woven in the early 1900s," Amrami said. "We have a superb collection of Masterwork Hand-Knotted Estate Carpets in Silk and Wool."

Amrami has been selling rugs all of his life, as both his father and grandfather were in the Oriental rug business in the Middle East. He went on his first buying trip at the age of five, but never stopped journeying from Iran to Turkey in search of rugs.

Grand Oriental Rugs was hit hard by the economic downturn, according to a store representative, and has been unable to overcome "dramatically receded retail sales." In a show of solidarity, Amrami has worked alongside friends and business associates to maintain extended hours at the store in an effort to sell as many of his remaining rugs as possible.

The store has been running a going out of business sale for several weeks now, attempting to liquidate every item in the store before this coming Saturday. Bargain hunters can still snag some cheap rugs, with the Edina store open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 7, and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.

The family has tried to get an extension through the end of September through their landlord, but were unable to get one granted. As a result, they've been hard-pressed to liquidate their inventory in order to get out of the store in time.

The store specializes in both antique and contemporary Persian carpets from Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Afghanistan, Egypt, China, Tibet and other countries. The rugs are available in a variety of sizes and weaves.

"We have thousands of rugs that must be sold," Amrami said.

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