What is "intershop"

Intershop was a chain of government-run retail stores in the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) in which only hard currencies (and later Forum Checks) could be used to purchase high-quality goods. The East German mark was not accepted as payment. Intershop was originally oriented towards visitors from Western countries, and later as an outlet where East Germans could purchase goods they could not otherwise obtain. An unintended consequence was that ordinary East Germans had some insight into the selection of goods available in the West, which they could then compare with the rather limited offerings available in their own country.