Wooden chess sets, hand-carved in India for the world's retail shelves.
Solid-wood chess boards and hand-turned pieces in sheesham, rosewood and acacia — with bone-inlay and brass-trimmed premium lines — made to your design, documented for every market, and shipped by the container from a single compliant source.
A chess set your customer keeps on the table, not in a drawer.
India's carved-wood and inlay traditions make chess one of our most giftable export lines. Boards are built from genuine solid wood with a contrasting light-and-dark square set; pieces are hand-turned or hand-carved, weighted and felted where the line calls for it. The result is an heirloom object with real margin on a retail shelf — not a flat-printed import. We anchor it in Jodhpur's solid-wood credibility and the Jaipur and Saharanpur inlay and carving workshops, then wrap it in the compliance and container logistics most craft suppliers can't offer.
Folding board sets
Hinged solid-wood boards that fold to a case and store the pieces inside — the travel-friendly, gift-ready core line.
Inlay & premium lines
Boards set with bone, mother-of-pearl or brass, and figurative hand-carved piece ranges — the high-value, giftable tier.
Board boxes & tables
Chess boxes with piece drawers, and game-top side tables — where chess crosses into our furniture and décor catalogue.
Woods, piece styles, sizes and finishes — built to your range.
Chess is a configuration order, not a single SKU. We quote against the choices below, sample your approved spec, then produce it to one consistent standard across the run. Dimensions are indicative and made to your requirement.
| Attribute | Options we make | Notes for buyers |
|---|---|---|
| Board woods | Sheesham (Indian rosewood), rosewood, acacia, mango, reclaimed wood + contrasting light timber | Genuine solid wood squares; not veneer or printed panel |
| Board format | Folding / hinged, flat board, board box with drawer, game-top table | Folding and box formats ship most densely |
| Piece style | Staunton (hand-turned), themed / figurative hand-carved, weighted & felted on premium lines | Kings typically from roughly 7 to 10 cm; made to spec |
| Square size | Common play sizes to your drawing | Board size is matched to your chosen king height |
| Inlay & trim | Bone, mother-of-pearl, brass borders, brass corners | The premium, high-margin tier |
| Finish | Natural oil, wax, matte or gloss lacquer; CARB / TSCA-compliant finishes | Low-odour, export-market-compliant coatings |
| Branding | Logo engraving, branded box, gift / retail-ready / Amazon-FBA-ready packaging | OEM private-label on your brand |
Choosing the timber first makes the rest straightforward — read how sheesham behaves on the sheesham (Indian rosewood) material page, or explore the hand-set detail of our bone & mother-of-pearl inlay for the premium boards.
Rosewood and sheesham chess — cleared for every market.
Carved Dalbergia chess sets are exactly the kind of timber goods that get stopped at customs when the paperwork is thin. Ours is built for it: CITES-compliant handling of sheesham and rosewood, Vriksh timber-legality verification, FSC chain-of-custody and EUDR-ready due diligence with geolocation and deforestation-free sourcing. US Lacey Act support, UK Timber Regulation, CARB / TSCA-compliant finishes and ISPM-15 heat-treated packing come on every shipment — certificate numbers shared directly with serious buyers on request.
| Concern | Our standard |
|---|---|
| Rosewood / sheesham legality | CITES-compliant · Vriksh verified |
| Sustainability | FSC chain-of-custody · reclaimed lines |
| EU / UK market | EUDR-ready · geolocation · UKTR |
| US market | Lacey Act support · CARB / TSCA finishes |
| Ethical sourcing | SEDEX / SMETA · ISO · SGS inspection |
| Export packing | ISPM-15 heat-treated · gift / retail-ready |
Trial a few sets, then fill the container.
Sample first
A trial of your chosen woods, piece style and board format ships LCL so you can approve the carve, weight, finish and packing before committing to volume.
Consolidate the load
For best pricing, one 20ft FCL thereafter. Chess sets are compact and dense, so they mix profitably with décor, games and furniture in a single compliant container. See our export packaging options.
Private-label it
Produce your own branded chess range — your woods, your piece design, your engraved box — with OEM design, CNC carving and gift or retail-ready packaging on your brand.
Chess sits within our full range of Indian regional crafts — browse the rest on the Indian specialty handicrafts hub.
Wooden chess sets — the details.
What woods do you use for your wooden chess sets?
We hand-carve chess boards and pieces in Indian solid woods — sheesham (Indian rosewood / Dalbergia sissoo), rosewood, acacia, mango and reclaimed wood — often paired with a contrasting light timber for the squares, plus optional brass, bone or mother-of-pearl inlay for premium lines. Boards and pieces are made from genuine solid wood, not veneer or panel.
Can you manufacture custom or private-label wooden chess sets to our design?
Yes. We work as both ODM — our own ready designs — and OEM, building to your drawings, piece styles (Staunton or themed), board sizes, square dimensions and finishes. Custom CNC carving and hand-turning let us reproduce your pieces precisely, we sample before any bulk run, and we add your brand with custom, gift or retail-ready packaging.
Are your wooden chess sets compliant for US and EU import?
Yes. Sheesham and rosewood (Dalbergia) are handled CITES-compliant, with Vriksh timber-legality verification and FSC chain-of-custody, and our due diligence is EUDR-ready with geolocation and deforestation-free sourcing. We support US Lacey Act declarations, UK Timber Regulation, CARB / TSCA-compliant finishes and ISPM-15 heat-treated export packing.
What is the minimum order and lead time for wooden chess sets?
A trial or sample order can ship LCL as part of a shared container. For best wholesale pricing thereafter, one 20ft full container load is our standard minimum, and chess sets pack densely enough to consolidate with décor and furniture. Typical lead time is 30–45 days, with urgent orders available at a premium.
How are wooden chess sets packed for export and retail?
Each set is packed to survive the container journey — pieces nested or felted inside the folding or box board, cartoned and palletised to ISPM-15 heat-treated standards. We also produce branded, gift and Amazon-FBA-ready packaging so sets arrive shelf-ready for retailers and online sellers.
Tell us the set. We'll quote the container.
Send a reference image, your woods and piece style, or a private-label brief. We quote FOB or CIF from Mundra / Nhava Sheva with MOQs, a 30–45 day lead time and full compliance documentation — and you can book a factory visit on prior intimation.