diff --git a/src/diffusers/pipelines/modular_pipeline.py b/src/diffusers/pipelines/modular_pipeline.py
index 636b543395..c994b91ba8 100644
--- a/src/diffusers/pipelines/modular_pipeline.py
+++ b/src/diffusers/pipelines/modular_pipeline.py
@@ -199,7 +199,8 @@ class ModularPipelineMixin:
             state = PipelineState()
 
         if not hasattr(self, "loader"):
-            raise ValueError("Loader is not set, please call `setup_loader()` first.")
+            logger.warning("Loader is not set, please call `setup_loader()` if you need to load checkpoints for your pipeline.")
+            self.loader = None
 
         # Make a copy of the input kwargs
         input_params = kwargs.copy()