Serkan was born and raised in Izmir, Turkey, where he grew up in a carpet store that his dad owned. Along with his two brothers, Okan and Hakan, Serkan started learning about the Turkish carpet business at a very young age.

Serkan and his brothers have taken over their father’s business and have continued working in it for over the past 30 years.

One of Serkan’s main jobs is to restore old carpets.

Once he and his brothers find and gather these antique carpets from all over the world, Serkan mends what needs mending and cleans the carpets to make them ready to sell.

When Serkan is not working on carpets his time is spent seeking to sell them to both wholesalers and retail buyers strolling by their shop.

His collection of antique carpets is varied and vast and grows daily.

The carpets are all handmade and dyed with natural dyes. A remarkable amount of detail goes into making these handmade carpets. Some of them take years to complete, even with full-time attention.

Each carpet comes with a unique story that these brothers love relaying as they show the carpets to their customers.

Each carpet comes with a unique story that these brothers love relaying as they show the carpets to their customers.

If a carpet’s condition is too poor to sell Serkan cuts it up, using it to make pillowcases.

These pillowcases have become the brothers’ number one seller.

According to the brothers, very few customers walk away from their shop without at least buying one pillowcase.

Though Serkan travels many months a year selling antique carpets with his brothers, he stays in touch with his young daughter and wife via video chat. Due to the success of the family business, Serkan has been able to put his daughter in one of the best schools in Izmir—something that gives him great pride.