India Carpet Expo

The India Carpet Expo is the carpet export council's own fair, for hand-knotted, hand-woven and tufted carpets and floor coverings. It sits in Bhadohi, right inside the carpet belt, so the product you're looking at was woven a short drive away. It also has the most generous hosted-buyer package we've found at any Indian fair, which doesn't hurt.

Next Edition

The organiser hasn't announced dates for the 51st edition yet. Keep an eye on indiacarpetexpo.com (opens in a new tab) and register there once they're out.

At the 50th edition, registered overseas buyers, sourcing consultants, media and invitees could come all four days, and general visitors got in only on the last day. If the next one runs the same way then do your serious buying on the trade-only days.

Rug Colours That Don't Match and How to Fix Them in Bhadohi

In September 2026 a thread on a US sellers' forum warned buyers off Indian rug sellers, noting "a lot of these other rug listings are from the same place Bhadohi" (r/Etsy, 2026 (opens in a new tab)). One US buyer had ordered an 8x10 rug listed as pink, and "the rug they sent me is gray" (r/Etsy, April 2026 (opens in a new tab)). The listings used renders, and the sellers blamed the lighting. Of course they did.

That's a retail story, but every importer runs into the same cause sooner or later. A made-to-order carpet is dyed and woven after you order it, so the photo proves nothing at all. Other US buyers on the same forums were happy with their Indian rugs, so this isn't about Bhadohi's skill - it's about skipping one approval step.

The fix is a strike-off or a set of yarn poms, dyed in the actual yarn and approved by you in daylight before weaving starts. At the Expo you can see that process for yourself, ask each exhibitor how they handle colour approval and dye-lot variation, and visit a dye house and a loom on the same trip. Then write the approved pom reference into the order. What happens after that is on our quality control in India page.

Who Exhibits

CEPC, the Carpet Export Promotion Council, organises the fair, and exhibitors are council members, meaning registered exporters with a track record.

Membership doesn't prove an exhibitor weaves the goods, though. In the carpet belt, weaving is spread across village looms, and exporters design, source the yarn, manage the weavers and finish the pieces. The trade has worked this way for generations and there's nothing wrong with it. Just ask who weaves your order, where, and who answers for its quality.

Buying rugs sold as Kashmiri? Get the origin in writing. A Srinagar maker told a US asker in 2025 that many Kashmiri showrooms sell rugs woven in Jaipur or Bhadohi, and that genuine Kashmir pieces carry a scannable GI tag (r/Rugs, 2025 (opens in a new tab)). That's one maker's view, so check the tag rules with the GI registry before you lean on them.

Hosted-Buyer Terms

As published for the 50th edition in September 2026, selected overseas buyers get up to two nights at a designated five-star hotel with breakfast, shuttles from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to the Expo Mart, and an airfare reimbursement (CEPC hospitality package (opens in a new tab)).

The airfare comes in three tiers. Buyers from 19 named countries, including the US, Canada and Australia, sit in the first tier, BRICS buyers in the second, and everyone else in the third. We don't publish the amounts, so check them on CEPC's page. BRICS buyers get a networking dinner too.

It's all at CEPC's sole discretion, after document checks, and you'll need your travel papers for the reimbursement. Expect to prove you're a real importer, and honestly, fair enough.

Visa and Getting There

Use the e-Business Visa, apply at least two weeks ahead, and ask CEPC for an invitation letter. The nearest airport is Varanasi, 50 to 60 minutes by road from Bhadohi, and the hosted package covers the shuttles.

What to Expect in Bhadohi

It's a single-sector fair in a single-sector town, so you meet a lot of carpet exporters in one hall and can visit weaving units close by. The hosted package buys the organiser a meeting schedule, and you'll be expected to sit through it. That's a fair trade if the meetings match your category, so ask who's on your list before you accept.

Past Editions

• 50th edition, 4 to 7 October 2026, Carpet Expo Mart, Bhadohi (India Carpet Expo, read 28 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)). The organiser's site doesn't list earlier editions, so we don't either.

Sources

• India Carpet Expo (opens in a new tab), official site, read 28 September 2026
• Hospitality package for overseas buyers (opens in a new tab), read 28 September 2026
• CEPC events (opens in a new tab), read September 2026

Where SourcingSync Helps

Want meetings booked before you fly, exhibitors pre-screened against their public records, and colour approvals and loom visits handled for you? SourcingSync (opens in a new tab) does all three.

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