Wedgwood has been one of the most recognizable brand names in the world for more than two hundred years--the epitome of quality and luxury--and is also the Enlightenment's most remarkable success story. Born into a poor family of potters, Josiah Wedgwood amassed a fortune that would today make him a billionaire, and created a multinational corporate empire. He combined rationality with bold experimentation, revolutionizing the business model of his time with a series of innovations: organizing skilled labor in one of the world's earliest factories; encouraging employee loyalty by offering long-term contracts that included health insurance and pension plans; and changing the very notion of shopping by utilizing showrooms and traveling salesmen.

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