# Why are pharmacies elevated? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 24, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397 "2009-09-24T17:44:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![leandroc76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bb73d2/32.png) [@leandroc76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leandroc76)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 5:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/1 "2009-09-24T17:44:15Z")
Is there some method or reason for elevating a pharmacy? Listening to a Sienfield comedy sketch, I heard him ask this, it was funny, but true. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/2 "2009-09-24T17:56:20Z")
The ones I go to are not but I know they were in the past in a lot of cases. The places I go to were all built in the last 5-10 years. ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/3 "2009-09-24T18:15:30Z")
Hm, I can picture the old drug store type pharmacys being elevated like you describe but all the modern ones I’ve been to (Walgreens, Eckerd, CVS, Target) are all floor level. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/4 "2009-09-24T18:35:05Z")
My guess is that, in the days before inch-thick plastic windows and suchlike, elevated pharmacies made it much harder to jump the counter and make a grab for the good stuff while the pharmacist’s back was turned. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2009, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/5 "2009-09-24T18:42:48Z")
Also in many cases the pharmacist ran the store so that way he could look out over the whole store more easily. ---
**Author:** ![Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/db5fbb/32.png) [@Hirka\_T\_Bawa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirka_T_Bawa)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2009, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/6 "2009-09-25T04:28:12Z")
I’ve never worked in or saw a pharmacy that was elevated as in we had to step up a step. However, I have worked in some where it looked like it, just due to the way it was designed, and that the ceiling was lower in the pharmacy then the rest of the store. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2009, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/7 "2009-09-25T04:59:58Z")
I think I know what you are talking about but the big pharmacy chains like CVS and Walgreens and even Wal-Mart and Target don’t do that at least not around here. I can’t remember seeing elevated pharmacies in many years (Boston area and much beyond). ---
**Author:** ![miatachris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@miatachris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miatachris)\ **Post date:** [September 25, 2009, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-pharmacies-elevated/511397/8 "2009-09-25T06:14:42Z")
Having worked in both, I can tell you that Bijou is correct. The often older, independent pharmacies were run by the pharmacist, who wanted to be able to see more of the store while still behind the counter. Nowadays, that’s much rarer and the elevation is no longer common. miatachris, R.Ph.