The First Shopping Mall?

The Galleries Royal Saint Hubert, located in central Brussels near the Grand Place, is the precursor to the modern shopping mall. Inaugurated in 1847, the galleries were a fashionable setting for shopping and gathering in the mid-to-late nineteenth century Brussels. Originally, Saint Hubert was designed to link two commercial districts and its glass and steel architecture lured shoppers in even when the weather in Belgian was not so good.  Since its opening the gallery has been the home of boutiques and luxurious shops. Particularly in the early days of its existence, the gallery was the home of newspaper editors, artistic clubs, as well as high-end retail shops, therefore it quickly became a gathering place for elites and intellectuals.

The convergence of modernity, intellectualism and beauty helped to create the idea of the importance of shopping to modern consumer culture. The motto of Saint Hubert, “Omnibus Omnia” (Everything for Everybody), assures the patron that everything that they might possibly want or need, materially and spiritually, can be obtained within the premise of the shopping experience. It even suggests that if you do not know what you need, the shops inside will help you identify what you might need. This is an example of the development of modern culture where, moving away from the traditional society, the person can be seemingly be fulfilled outside the realm of religion. That is, shopping provides everything one might need.

One of the most significant events, at least from my perspective, that took place in the galleries was on 1 March 1896 when the Lumiere Brothers screened their cinematic program for the first time in Belgium. It was just a mere two months following their initial Paris exhibition (28 December 1895), which was the first public performance of moving pictures ever projected on the screen. Although I need to do more research, it seems that the cinema located in the Royal Gallery might have been the first cinema to include paying customers rather than invited guests.