|
 |
 |
|
Illustration
by Shino Arihara |
|
|
By Ben Worthen
From
the Nov. 15, 2000 issue of CIO Magazine
The Claremont Rug Co., purveyor of antique
carpets made centuries ago by Southwest Asian nomads, has
benefited doubly from the great leap forward to the Internet.
First off, the California-based dealer has seen its customer
base of extraordinarily affluent collectors swell with new
economy millionaires. And then, ever since one technology-enriched
client-Adobe Systems CEO John Warnock-introduced Claremont
Rug owner Jan David Winitz to digital photography, the shop
has used its website www.claremontrug.com
as an electronic showroom.
"A few years
ago [Warnock] asked me about the Web, and I said, 'What's
that?'" Winitz recalls. But when he saw an early digital
photograph, "it was immediately obvious to me that this
technology would be a great help to us." Now Winitz's
site has an up-to-date online catalog as well as a password-protected
extranet for special collections.
The online presence
allows Claremont Rug to reach a wider customer pool and close
deals faster. Recently, a well-to-do executive saw a $125,000
rug on the site, bought it after viewing the digital photographs
and had it shipped to New York in time for a party the next
evening.
Winitz is quick to point out the irony
of using cutting-edge technology to sell a distinctly nontechnical
product made by distinctly nontechnical people. And while
no one can be sure what the wandering weavers would have thought
about the Internet, after spending 10 yurt-bound years crafting
a single rug, selling it in a single click might have felt
a little anticlimactic.
Also see: FINANCIAL TIMES - "Treasures You Purchase to Hold on to" (3/29/08)
Download printable version 
MARKET WATCH / THE WALL STREET JOURNAL - "Global Leap in Best Antique Rugs as Major Works of Art " (7/14/08)
Download printable version
MARKET WATCH / THE WALL STREET JOURNAL - "Domestic and International Connoisseurs Embrace Antique Rug Sales Event in “Next Frontier of Art Investing” " (6/2/08)
Download printable version
THE MERCURY NEWS - "Rare rugs" (5/30/08)
Download printable version
YAHOO FINANCE - "Claremont Rug Company Announces Additional Hudson River Valley Collection " (4/30/08)
Download printable version
REUTERS.COM - "Claremont Rug Company Holds Globally Significant Exhibition… Rare, 19th Century Caucasus Rugs" (12/17/07)
Download printable version
FORBES.COM - "Claremont Rug Company Acquires “Mother Lode” Collection of 19th Century Art Carpets" (2/12/08)
Download printable version
FORBES.COM - "Increasingly Savvy Clients and Decreasing Availability Combine with Internet To Create Perfect Storm in Rare Rug Market" (10/24/07)
Download printable version
MORNINGSTAR.COM - "Demand for Antique Carpets and Rugs Expands While Availability is Reduced" (9/16/07)
Download printable version
FORBES.COM - "Leading Antique Carpet Dealer Cites Boom in Internet Sales" (9/5/07)
Download printable version
WORTH MAGAZINE - "Masterpieces Underfoot "
Download printable version
CALIFORNIA CEO - "Putting
Out the Red Carpet: The Claremont Rug Company has woven a close
relationship with its customers thanks to a wise use of the Web."
Download printable version
FINANCIAL TIMES - "How
To Spend It: East bay passions. The sit-ins are long since over, says
Holly Finn, but Berkeley has plenty to shout about...The Claremont Rug
Company - one of the world's best sources of antique carpets - is here."
Download printable version
SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE - "Art At Your Feet: Antique or copied oriental rugs express their weavers' inspirations"
Download printable version
OAKLAND TRIBUNE - "Web Helps Rug Store Clinch Sales"
BEL AIR ARTICLE - "What Hotel Bel Air (Beverly Hills, CA) says about Claremont Rug"
|
