Roslyn Johnson, principal of Aleure, Ltd., believes child-labor-free production ensures the intrinsic beauty of the company’s luxurious rugs. According to Roslyn, the ancient crafts are only as beautiful as the high labor standards implemented in weaving them. “By establishing partnerships with humanitarian organizations like RugMark, we hope to help the international community focus on resolving some of the remediable problems of working children everywhere.” More >

When Dallas-based Interior Resources opened 33 years ago, it was solely a commercial contract flooring company. Eight years later, owners Jack and Merikay Green restructured their business into a designer "To The Trade" flooring supplier. With their daughter Paige Sowden managing the showroom, the family business has further progressed to represent high-end, exclusive carpets and rugs. Along with a passion for supporting the design trade with quality products is a commitment to the people who make them and a desire to support the industry. “Joining RugMark”, explains Paige, “helps us feel like we’re doing more than just business. We are contributing to important changes in South Asia, like child-free labor.” More >

Just a little more than a decade ago, The Rug Company co-founders Christopher and Suzanne Sharp were in the business of traveling around the world making films. They certainly didn't dream of being in the rug industry and having showrooms around the world. Collecting rugs was a hobby and a passion for the couple, but the craft of carpets that they loved so much was the compass that led them to founding The Rug Company. Says Christopher Sharp, "Anything that comes out of a passion just works." More >

When artist Amy Helfand was ready to expand her design portfolio to include rugs in early 2005, contacting RugMark was a natural first step. While established in the art world for more than 15 years, Amy had never contracted production overseas. She wanted the added assurance that the production practices were ethical, as well as the connection to a broader community of rug import companies. More >

When artist and designer Liza Phillips launched her company in 2004, she knew its philosophy would be based not only on good design but good labor practices. Having visited several workshops in Kathmandu, Liza was aware of the potential for exploitation in the industry. Determined to do everything possible to better the lives of weavers and their children as they face the future, she signed up with RugMark early on. More >

Growing up in the endless expanse of the Canadian Prairies gave Tracey Sawyer, Principal and Creative Director of the young New York City-based company, The Nought Collective, a particular perspective on both design and justice. “In the Prairies, we just naturally have a sense of respect for the environment and a sense of awe that translates into a respect for people,” Sawyer explains. “It’s logical that we’re part of RugMark." More >

Santa Fe-based designer Robin Gray launched her rug business hoping to help sustain the native techniques and traditions of gifted artisans whose skills have often been passed down for generations. “My aim,” she says, “is to preserve the cultural heritage and help sustain the livelihoods of my artisan partners.” Robin’s membership in RugMark helps her achieve this goal by ensuring that the skilled adults weaving her rugs are not economically marginalized by competition from child labor. Robin says she sees her association with RugMark as her “small contribution to spreading the word." More >

Service to the community is a must for Stacy Weiss of Weisshouse, a Pittsburgh home furnishing and interior design company, so joining RugMark was a perfect fit. “We have always given rugs to charities supporting a variety of causes and it felt important to support the rug weavers too,” says Weiss. Her clients seem to be pleased as well. Weiss thinks the affiliation with RugMark is a selling point. “People are thrilled to know they’re buying something that is not made at the expense of children.  I am a firm believer that people just don’t want rugs in their homes made by kids, and that’s what RugMark fights for,” she says. More >

Rug design seems to be such a powerful medium that it draws not only artists trained in textiles, but also people from a variety of disciplines. Product designer Greg Finney, who co-founded 2Modern, a company specializing in modern lifestyle designs for the home, is a case in point. However, Finney was long fascinated with the possibilities and power of rugs to define a room. “A rug can instantly change a space,” he says. “It’s like a magic carpet!” More >

“When I travel to find a rug,” says Christiane Millinger, partner in Madison Millinger Rugs showroom, “I look for the ones that really talk, the absolutely fabulous ones that go deeper than any one style.” Carrying brands that treat weavers equitably, do not use child labor and pay fair wages are also important criteria that Millinger looks for when selecting rugs. The RugMark label is one tool that helps her convey this to clients. More >

Los Angeles design company notNeutral is the product arm of architecture and design firm Rios, Clementi, Hale Studios. According to notNeutral’s CEO, Julie Smith-Clementi, creating rugs was a natural addition to their home décor and kids’ divisions. Since most modern design rugs were focused on an adult market, notNeutral took on the joyful challenge of creating “hip, affordable kids’ rugs that are neither “cutesy nor character-driven,” says Smith. notNeutral had worked with children’s products for years and concern for their well-being was a given, says Smith, “so we wouldn’t have even started making rugs without RugMark.” More >

Grounded in both the cultural and material histories of textiles, Dorjé Contemporary honors the natural and human resources vital to the production of its handmade carpets. Dorjé joined RugMark to further its commitment to creating the highest possible work and living standards for its workers. More >

The story of Ghiordes Knot reads like a “rags to riches” tale. In 1921, escaping Turkish persecution of Armenians, Haroutun Hagopian fled to the U.S. Though trained as a pharmacist, Hagopian worked as a dishwasher, factory worker and perfume maker until, using his training in chemistry, he created compounds to clean carpets. Over the years carpet cleaning became carpet retailing and today Detroit-based Ghiordes Knot (GK) is owned by his grandchildren Edmond, Suzanne, and Angela.

GK has a large collection of rugs from around the world and a family ethic shaped by the founder’s early experiences of hardship. The family stories of those experiences made the Ghiordes’ choice to join RugMark a natural one. “We want to know that the people making the rugs we buy and sell are paid properly, taken care of and that there are no children involved,” Edmond explains. More >

In Brad Grinnen's mind there is no distinction between his work designing and manufacturing Tibetan rugs and his commitment to bettering the community. "My faith is so much a part of me that it wasn't a love of rugs that took me to this work, it was my love of humanity," he says. To that end, Grinnen allied his recently formed company with RugMark. "I only work with RugMark licensed factories," he says emphatically. "It is the only way I know to guarantee child labor is not used in the production." More >

Beth Arrowood, president and owner of Miami-based NIBA Rug Collections, had a childhood rich with travel. “At an early age I was keenly aware of how other people live in the world,” she says. That early insight explains, in part, why she is so happy to be in the rug industry. “I love helping to keep the tradition of rug making alive, keeping people employed and doing something good in another part of the world. It’s the whole package!” she explains.  And part of that package is her membership in RugMark. “There is just no way we would work with a factory that is not inspected by RugMark,” she says emphatically. More >

Tom DeMarco, founder of the New York-based Kooches Carpets, was an early supporter of RugMark, particularly while working for Odegard Carpets, the organization's first industry member. But what really made DeMarco want to join RugMark was learning that the organization not only rescued and educated child weavers, it also educated the children of adult weavers - a holistic and sustainable approach. More >

Apeiron Design LLC is a new company, but for owner-designer Charles Livingston, the company is just the latest step in his artistic evolution.  “My artwork, the painting, print and drawing,” he explains, “just seemed to enforce that I needed to go in the direction of rug design.”  Today, with a line of hand tufted contemporary rugs that are extensions of his artwork and a portfolio of custom work, Livingston is pleased with his choice -- including his decision to join RugMark.  As the owner of a small company, Charles knew that he could have greater reach and social impact via the organization. More >

When Michael Pourvakil, the Iranian-born founder of Weavers Art, got his first "real job" at 26, it was a fluke that it was in the rug business. He was a "people person," and figured he would be a good salesman, but had no idea he would fall in love with rugs. Pourvakil is fascinated with the industry and with the weavers who have the most difficult task in the creation of carpets. “They spend their lives tying millions of knots day after day, and they and their families need to be taken care of, “ he says with conviction. From the beginning Michael Pourvakil has tried to do his part to help the workshops where the rugs are made, but joining RugMark, he says, is “a very direct way to give back.” More >

Portland, Ore.-based Kush Hand-Knotted Carpets, the creation of Rebecca and Brian Robins, offers an array of RugMark certified rugs, and appreciates the opportunity to educate and promote fair labor practices. Rebecca feels that "RugMark gives our gallery a voice when we purchase rugs. Much like our clients we are voting with our dollars to encourage producers to uphold the RugMark standard." More >

John Kurtz, designer and producer of New Moon, is a nationally recognized expert in the complex field of oriental rugs. Over the years, through his PBS television series, John has introduced millions of viewers to the world of oriental rugs. A trained artist, John sketches and paints each rug before it is hand woven in Nepal from the most spectacular materials in the world, such as hand-spun, 100 percent Tibetan wool and occasionally luxurious Chinese silk. As a founding member of RugMark, New Moon works to abolish illegal child labor in the carpet industry, ensuring its rugs are the most beautiful. More >