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Laman Ismayilova

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Preparations are underway for the International Carpet Festival, which will be held on May 1-3, organized by the Azerkhalcha OJSC and the Icherisheher State Historical-Architectural Reserve Office, with the support of the Ministry of Economy and the Export and Investment Promotion Agency – AZPROMO, AzerNEWS reports.

The Festival will start on May 1 at the Baku Business Center with the International Carpet Forum dedicated to the theme "Carpet Industry: Value creation, branding and global markets. From cultural heritage to a competitive global product."

The Forum will bring together leading international experts, designers, manufacturers, researchers, exporters, and creative industry representatives from the carpet industry. It should be noted that from 14.04.2026 registration starts on the official website of the Festival for those wishing to attend the Forum as a listener.

The registration can be accessed from this address (https://bakucarpetfest.az/2026/forum/). Listener space for the Forum is limited.

The International Carpet Forum, which will be held for the second time, is an important platform for transforming handmade carpets from traditional heritage into a globally competitive product. The event focuses more on real business practices and successful international examples than on theory.

Here are the main objectives and directions of this year's Forum:

Transition from Culture to Business: The Forum views carpet not just as a museum exhibit or an example of ancient art, but as a highly profitable commercial product that can be sold in the global marketplace. Modern

Design Requirement: The basic approach is that, as far as carpet quality is concerned, its compatibility with modern interiors and design innovation are also decisive for international success.

Storytelling: According to modern marketing requirements, not only the product is important to the buyer, but also the culture behind the carpet, the work of the weaver, and its mystical meaning.

Practical Experience: Instead of theoretical lectures, real sales and export models of foreign companies and designers already successful in the global market are cited as examples.

This year's Forum will feature speakers Nasser Al Darmaki, Vice President of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) and Chairman of ICOM in the UAE, who has made a mark in the history of modern carpet weaving, Prof. Dr. Maria Del Carmen Avendano Rito, a researcher, academic and community-based sustainable development specialist from Mexico, Luca Emilio Brancati, a collector, restorer, and world-class expert in the scientific research of ancient carpets from Italy, Fahri Solak, Secretary General of the Union of Municipalities of the Turkic World (TDBB), Dinara Asanbayeva, Executive Director of Kyrgyz Handmade, Tarig Sadig, General Director of Maison de l'Artisan (House of the Artisan) under the Moroccan Ministry of Tourism, Handicrafts and Social Economy, and others.

This Forum aims to provide a practical roadmap for both designers and manufacturers to increase the economic potential of the carpet industry.

Media partners of the event are Azernews.Az, Trend.Az, Day.Az and Milli.Az.