Lift and pulley systems were in use from ancient times but it took a Royal Commission from Louis XV of France (in the 17th Century) who wanted a counterweight lift for his wife, before passenger elevators (lifts) began to take shape.
However, people remained mistrustful of the concept and it was only when Elisha Graves Otis invented – and publicly demonstrated – the first safety brake for elevators, that the potential for taking buildings higher than a person could comfortably climb really took off.
The very first commercial installation undertaken by Otis was in 1857, at a five-storey department store in New York City. His achievement was widely acclaimed and today’s familiar high-rise cityscapes began to emerge rapidly, each reaching higher than the last. The first electric elevator was built by Werner von Siemens in 1880 in Germany.
Businesses, hotels, retail outlets and others all began to maximize their floorspace by building upwards. In 1946, the JL Hudson department store on Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, was completed. It had 33 levels and remained the tallest department store in the world until the 1960s.
Working alongside escalators, elevators transport shoppers from floor to floor, but they fulfill a broader function in that they are also vital for the transportation of goods between floors. Further back in the retail supply chain, elevators and the principles of platforms on pulleys are used throughout manufacturing and production plants and distribution centers.
The award-winning Burj Khalifa tower building in Dubai emphasizes just how essential a modern day elevator is for trade and business to flourish. When construction began in 2004, its planners proclaimed it would house the ‘largest shopping mall in the world’. Without elevators, its 160 floors would be of little appeal to even the hardiest shopper.
Contribution to Retail History
The multi-floored department stores, shopping centres and outlets that we shop in today could not exist were it not for their elevators. They keep customers moving quickly, reliably and efficiently through the shopping environment. They also improve in-store logistics as elevators speed up the distribution of stock, improve customer flow and enable heavier and bulkier merchandise to be sold and transported.