Baťa’s Elevator Office

Baťa's Skyscraper in Zlin, Czechia may look like another drab, nondescript mid-century office building. However, it is unique in that it was one of the first skyscrapers constructed in Europe, all the way back in 1938. Built for the Baťa shoe company's headquarters in a streamlined Constructivist design, the building was equipped with many of the modern conveniences of the time, plus one: an office for president Jan Antonin Baťa inside an elevator!

What seems like a massive feat of engineering was actually not that difficult, even back then. Making an elevator 6 by 6 meters in size had already been done for cargo purposes. Electricity was already provided to elevators for lighting purposes, so adding additional cables for wall outlets or air conditioning could also be done. There is even a sink, which operates quite primitively with a water tank above and wastewater bin below. Periodically, the former would be filled and the latter emptied.

It is unclear why Baťa wanted to build such an office. Some say he wanted to keep an eye on offices on every floor and room, however some rooms are not visible from the office. Regardless, Jan Antonin Baťa never got to use it because he was permanently exiled from Czechoslovakia due to World War II.