While traveling abroad in the winter of 1979, former Indian philosophy professor Bill Indich was approached by Tibetans with a business venture: selling Tibetan rugs on the U.S. Mainland East Coast. Though he declined the offer, he kept the idea in the back of his mind until he moved back to the Hawaiian Islands in June 1980. Soon after, he opened Indich Collection, the only company in the Islands that carries thousands of rugs made specifically for the Hawaii market, according to Indich.

Today, Indich and his team of 25 run four locations on Oahu, Maui and the Big Island. They also manage an online store and will ship their goods anywhere in the world. Both in-store and online, customers can find rugs from Iran, Pakistan, Nepal, India, China and Turkey. Each rug is handmade by professionals and woven from wool, silk or a wool-silk blend. Because Indich and his team work directly with their in-house designers and artists around Honolulu, every rug is designed with the local market in mind.

“[Customers] should expect to find beautiful, decorative rugs,” says Indich. And they will – thousands of them, from contemporary to Hawaiian to Persian and more. Because there are so many styles to choose from, Indich says it’s good for buyers to come in with an idea of what they want. But, if for some reason they can’t find the perfect rug, Indich Collection also offers custom-made options. The company’s in-house design specialists are happy to work with customers to create one-of-a-kind masterpieces of any size, shape, color and design. Indich also offers rug cleaning and repair services for all rugs.

After 30 years in business, Indich is optimistic about the company’s future in Hawaii. “We always have a large group of people who appreciate what we do.” The best part of being in the rug business? “Being around beauty all the time,” he says.

Indich Collection