PM&M [Germany / Brandenburg / Elsterwerda (01)]

The small factory was founded in 1900 by a Mr. Korsukewiez and was located between the Schwarze Elster river and one of its tributaries, the Pulsnitz. Over the years, Korsukewiez slowly but surely increased the factory's capacity, employing up to 200 people in the 1920s and 1930s. However, some other sources claim that the factory had as many as 400 workers in 1925.

Many famous designers and sculptors worked at the factory. For example, the designer Ursula Fesca worked there between 1928 and 1931, as did other well-known artists such as Siegfried Möller, Grete Gottschalk and Franz Eggert. As well as normal household items, the factory produced ceramic clocks during the Art Deco period, and one of the decorative styles used is a prime example of the combined airbrush and stencil technique employed in the mid-1930s. It should be noted that, alongside the marks shown from the interwar period, the factory also used the word "Elsterwerda" in a circle or left items unmarked except for a simple sticker. After WWII, some of the machines and kilns were disassembled and sent to the Soviet Union as part of the reparations agreement.

Sadly, that is also when the entire company archive went missing. It is believed that it was either destroyed or, more likely, taken away with the machinery. Shortly after the Second World War, the regular factory mark was replaced by a stamped "VVB Elsterwerda", which was used until the "VVB"-based structure for grouping nationalised companies was slowly abandoned in favour of the linear "VEB" approach in the early to mid-1950s.

[2] VEB Steingut Elsterwerda (1972 until 1990)

The factory was almost completely gutted after the founding of the German Democratic Republic, but it slowly recovered and soon caught up with its former production numbers. In 1972, the factory was nationalised and renamed VEB Steingut Elsterwerda. It employed over 400 people at its peak and continued production until German reunification in 1990.

[3] Elsterwerda-Keramik GmbH (1990 until 2004)

In 1990, the company was reprivatised, leading to massive layoffs and leaving only seven workers. The factory was then restructured and refitted using mainly inventory purchased from Ulmer Keramik Hans Sauer, which had closed down in the city of Ulm (Baden-Württemberg). Shortly afterwards, the factory was fully operational again, producing tableware and employing 40 people.

All seemed in vain by the end of the 1990s, as the business had to file for insolvency. However, an investor from West Germany saved the business, enabling it to continue. Items were marked "Meissen Land" and carried a stylised magpie in a circle. I have not yet been able to obtain an image of this type of mark.

But luck was running out, and in 2003 the company was threatened by bankruptcy again. The remaining 26 workers believed that this time it would be final. The successful Clou & Classic GmbH company, located in Lower Saxony and dealing with glass, cutlery and other tableware, had been looking for a new production facility when they stumbled upon the Elsterwerda facility by coincidence. In a last-minute deal, the company saved the Elsterwerda factory, which was re-founded as Clou & Classic Ceramics GmbH Elsterwerda during the first two weeks of February 2004.

[4] Clou & Classic Ceramics GmbH Elsterwerda (2004 until 2005)

Utilising the distribution channels of the Clou & Classic main company, the Elsterwerda factory produced 80 per cent of its output for export, with customers in 91 countries. However, the factory was soon deemed too inefficient to cope with the international market, and it closed at the end of 2005, with its machinery being sold to various companies in Eastern Europe.

[5] Clou & Classic Porcelain Company Germany GmbH (2005 until 2022)

Clou & Classic, a company then located in Burgdorf-Hülptingsen in Lower Saxony, continued under proprietor Anneke Bongert without manufacturing items itself. It offered a small variety of cutlery, glassware, candle holders and porcelain tableware produced by various suppliers. Shortly afterwards, the company opened a showroom and began offering pre-fabricated or custom-designed tiled ovens. Everything seemed to be going well until 2020, when the pandemic hit. With supply lines disrupted and customers unable to shop or receive items for an unforeseeable period, Bongert's hands were tied. With bills still coming in, she had no choice but to close her business on 2022-06-22.

Comment(s)

I would like to thank Fritz Lothar Wulf for providing additional information that has helped me improve this page.

Marks