MOQ, minimum order quantity, is the smallest amount a manufacturer is willing to produce in a single order. In the handmade rug trade, MOQ varies considerably by construction (hand-knotted programs typically run smaller MOQs than hand-tufted, given the labor investment per piece), by size, and by whether a design is an existing stock pattern versus a fully custom one-off.
Why it matters to a buyer
MOQ is one of the first things to confirm with a manufacturer, since it directly affects whether a small trial order or a private label test collection is feasible before committing to a larger program. It is specific enough to each order that it is normally confirmed on the quotation rather than quoted as a single fixed number.