Inventor of the Shopping Mall

Vienna Architect Victor Gruen is considered to be "father of the Modern Shopping Mall." The shopping mall's origin can be traced back to 1939 when Gruen was asked to design a leather goods shop in Manhattan. The outcome was anything but plain. Gruen devised an entryway filled with stylishly illuminated glass display cases that acted as a kind of precursor to the modern day mall. Just a few years later Gruen would come up with the idea of placing many different kinds of stores under one roof with air-conditioning for the hot summer months and radiant heat for the winter.