East Germany: Of Meissen Men

When they packed up their displays at the end of this month's Leipzig trade fair, most East German companies found themselves with virtually empty order books. One state-owned company had an altogether different problem. The famed Meissen chinaworks, which was the hit of the show, wound up with six months' worth of new business. The company's popularity was so striking that its managers were already finding it embarrassing; the "People's Own Plant, State China Manufactory, Meissen" had been running far behind in filling orders even before the trade fair began.

The backlog can only be blamed on success—not Communist...

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