Made-in-China products have flooded the pottery market in Lalejin, an international hub for the craft in Hamedan Province, threatening to transform the industrial landscape of the city two years after it achieved formal recognition as the World Pottery Capital.
It has become an issue of grave concern for both local craftsmen and officials.
Mohammad Nasser Nikbakht, governor general of Hamedan Province, has been pushing for months to ban Chinese pottery from the city's market, but to no avail.
Ali Malmir, head of the provincial office of Iran's Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization, admitted that Chinese products are dominating Lalejin's market but said most of them have been imported legally and cannot be treated as contraband.
"Although there are some reports by inspectors of smuggled goods discovered in stores' stocks, the majority of commodities in Lalejin's stores have been imported through official channels… It has weakened the hand of oversight bodies," Malmir said.
"Had they been imported via illegal means, it would have been much easier to deal with them as contraband," IRNA quoted him as saying.
Conflicting Accounts
But his deputy for handicrafts Alireza Qasemi denied the existence of any Chinese pottery in Lalejin's market, citing high import duties.
"There are no Chinese pottery products in Lalejin because of high customs duties levied on them," Qasemi said.
He did not, however, deny the rather widespread existence of other Chinese products offered next to local artworks overshadowing them.
"Inspection teams set up by Industries, Mining and Trade organization and other relevant bodies are making regular visits to Lalejin's stores… We are encouraging the sellers to remove Chinese goods from their stores' inventory," he said.
A pottery manufacturer and trader active in Lalejin's market, Gholamali Karimpour, warned that unless the specter of Chinese commodities haunting the pottery sector is soon banished, the city's booming tourism industry will suffer a serious setback.
"We do not want any product other than Lajini pottery and ceramics to be sold in the city's stores because most tourists visit the city to purchase its local products," he said.
Handicrafts expert Maryam Moqaddasi called for more creativity and variety in the designs offered by Lajini potters to meet customers' varying needs and preferences.
"The reason people are increasingly inclining toward foreign-made pottery and ceramics is their popular and attractive colors and glaze and the interesting motifs drawn on them. Lalejin's potters should take notice of the customer's taste in their products," she said.
Around 80% of Lalejin's population of 55,000 are directly involved in the production, distribution or sale of pottery.
Lalejin has about a hundred workshops, most of which are family-run.
According to archaeologists and historians, there is a long history behind the earthenware hub, dating back to the ancient Persian Empire.
