Importing authentic hand-knotted rugs from Turkey, Oushak Chic is the creation of three Georgia friends and UGA graduates.
The partners—now living in Nashville, Tennessee; Mobile, Alabama; and Atlanta—launched the business in 2018 and haven’t looked back. One of the founders is Buckhead resident Chrissie Henritze who left her career in residential landscape design for this more flexible venture that allows her to spend more time with her three children. Here, Henritze shares more about the burgeoning business.
How did launching Oushak Chic transpire?
Oushak Chic came about two summers ago on a beach trip with my childhood friend, Lane [the Nashville partner]. I was discussing my desire for a flexible job that I could do while my kids were at school but still be an available mom when they got home. She told me about her friend, Lindsey [the Mobile partner], who had recently mentioned the idea of importing rugs and reselling them. I was in from the moment she mentioned it.
Where are the rugs sold?
Our initial plan was to hold trunk shows at peoples’ homes in different cities to showcase our rugs and let people purchase them there or put in special requests (i.e. colors, size and style) for us to find for them. Due to COVID-19, our trunk shows are halted, but you can purchase or make special requests on Instagram. We have a website, although many rugs do not ever make it to the site as they are often sold on Instagram before we get the chance. We also work with several designers to source rugs for specific projects.
What are your future plans for expansion?
We would like to have more trunk shows in more cities. We would also love to have our small mat-size rugs in boutique design stores all over the county to introduce people to our products.
What are some of your most popular rugs?
Mats are always a top seller for us because they are so versatile and can be used in so many different places like inside a door, under a sink, in a powder room or by a shower or bathtub. They are a fun way to add pops of color or add character with the unique designs of the neutral styles.
What’s the price point of the rugs?
Because we import directly from Turkey and cut out the middleman, we are able to keep our prices very low in comparison to most other retailers of hand-knotted rugs. Ours typically vary from $150 to $1,500.
