I always assume people know geography and history, and I forget that some people don’t study these subjects at school and don’t have an interest in them after school. In case you are interested, here are some facts about Iran.

Official Name: Islamic Republic of Iran

Population: About 70 million

Location: Middle East

Borders: Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iraq and Persian Gulf Sheikdoms

Area: 1,648,000 sq. km

Climate: Some parts of Iran have dry air and semi-dry air but someother parts are moderate and mild.Altogether, Iran enjoy diversity in climate.

Natural resources: Petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, Iran ore, lead, Manganese, zinc

Ethnic groups: Persian 51%, Azerbaijani 29%, Gilaki & Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions: Shia Muslim 95%, Sunni Muslim 4%, other 1%

Language: Persian & Persian dialects 58%, Turkish & Turkic Dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Baloch 1%, Arabic 1%, other 2%

Exports: Petroleum, carpet, fruits, dried fruits (pistachio, raisin, date), Hideand, caviar, petrochemical productions, textiles, garment, foods industry productions.

Imports: Machinery, metal works foodstuffs, pharmaceutical, technical services, chemical products.

Industries: Petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement & other building materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining & vegetable oil production), metal fabricating

Agriculture: Wheat, Rice, Grains, Sugar, Beets, Fruits, Nuts, Cotton, Dairy products, Wool, Caviar

Currency: Iranian Rials (IR)

Highways: 158,000 km

Pipelines: Crude oil 5,900 km, petroleum products 3900 km, natural Gas 4,550 km

Ports: Abadan, Ahwaz, Bandarshahid Beheshti, Bandar Abbas, Bandar Anzali, Bandar Mahshahr, Bandar Bushehr, Bandar Khomeini, Bandar Turkmen, Khorramshahr, Nowshahr

Airports: 261

We started this idea of importing clothing from Iran several months ago. Hossein has many contacts in Iran, some of whom I have spoken to many times over the last year and a half. I’ve had a phone number in Tehran since March 2007 which allows anyone in Tehran to call me (via VoIP) for the cost of a local call (free in Tehran). So, while Hossein isn’t officially allowed to work in Australia (visa restrictions at the time of writing), I’ve been doing all the leg-work, so to speak.

Our ranges are from successful designers/manufacturers in Iran. We are the only representatives in the Pacific Region for these companies, which gives us an edge in terms of unique products.

I’m slowly contacting designer and manufacturing resources in Iran and hope to build a sizeable range for wholesale as well as retail. Our top sellers, most stylish designs and our picks will go for wholesale. To start we’ll be offering all our styles for retail and wholesale, but a season or two and there will be a small and very exclusive range for wholesale only.

If you are a retailer interested in any of our new season’s range, please contact us!