That attitude has fueled the growth of both the inexpensive handmade products and machine-made rugs. Tufted, hand-loomed and Tibetan-weave rugs can be made in a matter of months, compared to the year, or longer, lead time required to produce fine hand-knotted rugs.
Many retailers are still smarting from the sting of recession, a period during which they were caught with slow-moving inventory. And they want to protect themselves from a reoccurrence of that phenomenon. In effect, they are asking vendors to serve as their warehouses.