From Omaha Roots to Kansas City and St. Louis Expansion, Shannon and Emiliano Lerda Are Creating Opportunities for Entrepreneurs Through Coworking, Co-Warehousing, and Community.
When Brandon Harrison, owner of Good Vibrations Tattoo Studio, picked up the keys to his new private studio inside Elevator’s Kansas City location, he wasn’t thinking about commercial real estate.
He was thinking about a dream.
In a social media post shared shortly after receiving the keys, Harrison wrote:
“Today I picked up the keys to something I once only dreamed about—my own private tattoo studio.”
He continued:
“Three years ago, I couldn’t see past my next day. Today, I hold the keys to my future. This is proof that redemption is real, that growth is possible, and that dreams don’t have expiration dates.” ~ Brandon Harrison
For most people scrolling past the post, it may have looked like another entrepreneur opening a business.
For Harrison, it represented something much bigger.
It represented ownership.
It represented freedom.
It represented possibility.
And in many ways, his story captures what Shannon and Emiliano Lerda hoped to create when they launched Elevator.
Because while Elevator is often described as a coworking and co-warehousing company, that description only tells part of the story.
At its core, Elevator is about helping people take the next step.
A Business Built From Firsthand Experience
Long before they were helping entrepreneurs across the Midwest grow their businesses, Shannon and Emiliano Lerda were facing a challenge of their own.
The Omaha-based couple was operating a growing ecommerce business from their home.
At first, the arrangement worked.
Then inventory began filling spare bedrooms.
Boxes started taking over the garage.
Deliveries arrived multiple times each week.
The business was growing, but finding the right space to support that growth proved surprisingly difficult.
Traditional warehouse operators often required multi-year commitments. Available spaces were typically far larger than what a small business actually needed. Storage units solved one problem while creating several others.
Like many entrepreneurs, they found themselves stuck between working from home and signing a long-term commercial lease.
There seemed to be no practical solution designed for businesses in that stage of growth.
Then came a simple but powerful question.
What if warehouse space worked more like coworking space?
That idea would eventually become Elevator.
Rethinking How Entrepreneurs Grow
In 2022, the Lerdas opened Elevator’s first location inside Omaha’s historic Old Market district.
The concept was intentionally different.
Instead of forcing entrepreneurs into long-term commitments, Elevator combined flexible warehouse units, private offices, coworking memberships, meeting rooms, logistics support, and shared business amenities under one roof.
The goal wasn’t simply to rent space.
It was to remove barriers.
Many entrepreneurs don’t need 10,000 square feet.
They don’t need a seven-year lease.
They don’t need to navigate complicated commercial real estate negotiations before they’ve fully validated a business idea.
What they need is an opportunity to start.
Elevator was built around that reality.
Whether it’s an ecommerce brand processing orders, a service business moving out of a spare bedroom, a startup building its first team, or a creative entrepreneur opening a studio, the model allows businesses to grow at their own pace.
More Than Coworking. More Than Co-Warehousing.
Walk through an Elevator location today and you’ll find private offices, coworking desks, warehouse units, conference rooms, loading docks, event space, shipping support, podcast studios, photography resources, educational programming, and shared business amenities.
But the physical space is only part of the story.
Perhaps Elevator’s most valuable asset is the community that exists within it.
Entrepreneurship can be an isolating journey.
Many founders spend years working alone before ever becoming part of a larger business network.
The Lerdas intentionally designed Elevator to create opportunities for connection.
Members attend networking events, educational workshops, lunch-and-learns, training sessions, founder meetups, and community gatherings. Businesses collaborate with one another. Partnerships form. Ideas are exchanged.
For some members, the relationships they build become just as valuable as the space they lease.
And for many, it’s the first time they’ve found themselves surrounded by people facing the same challenges, opportunities, and ambitions.
The Simplicity of Starting
One of Elevator’s greatest strengths isn’t necessarily the space itself.
It’s how simple the company has made the process.
Traditional commercial real estate often comes with significant barriers. Long-term leases. Large deposits. Complex negotiations. Commitments that can feel intimidating for entrepreneurs still validating their business.
Elevator takes a different approach.
Flexible agreements.
Scalable space.
Month-to-month options.
An environment designed to grow alongside the business rather than forcing the business to fit a predetermined model.
That flexibility has helped entrepreneurs who may never have considered commercial space take the leap into something of their own.
For many members, the first key they receive represents more than access to a room.
It represents belief.
Expanding Across the Midwest
What began as an Omaha startup has quickly evolved into a growing Midwest platform for entrepreneurs.
Today, Elevator operates locations in Omaha and Lincoln, Nebraska; Des Moines, Iowa; Kansas City, Missouri; and most recently, St. Louis.
The newest St. Louis location spans more than 67,000 square feet and reflects the company’s continued belief that entrepreneurs deserve access to flexible, scalable workspace regardless of market size.
The recent expansion into Kansas City represents another important milestone.
While many companies focus exclusively on major metropolitan markets, the Lerdas have intentionally built Elevator around the Midwest.
Their strategy reflects a belief that innovation, entrepreneurship, and business creation are not limited to Silicon Valley, New York, or Austin.
Great businesses are being built everywhere.
The founders simply wanted to create environments where those businesses could thrive.
Creating Economic Mobility One Business at a Time
The diversity of businesses operating inside Elevator locations speaks to the flexibility of the model.
Members include ecommerce brands, consultants, service businesses, content creators, artists, startups, distributors, and entrepreneurs exploring ideas for the very first time.
Some are looking for warehouse space.
Some need an office.
Some want community.
Some simply need a place to start.
And while every entrepreneur’s journey is different, many share something in common:
They’re building something they hope will change their future.
Stories like Brandon Harrison’s are exactly what the Lerdas envisioned when they launched Elevator.
Not every member arrives with the same background, business model, or goals.
What they share is a desire to create something of their own.
Elevator provides the environment where that transformation can begin.
The Real Product Isn’t Space
It’s easy to describe Elevator in terms of square footage, offices, warehouse units, conference rooms, loading docks, or amenities.
But those things are not what make the company unique.
The real product is opportunity.
It’s the entrepreneur moving a business out of a garage.
It’s the startup hiring its first employee.
It’s the ecommerce founder shipping orders more efficiently.
It’s the service provider opening a first professional office.
And sometimes, it’s someone holding keys to a business they once thought would never exist.
The workspace matters.
The community matters.
The flexibility matters.
But what those things make possible matters even more.
Looking Ahead
Today, Elevator operates across five Midwest markets and continues evaluating opportunities for future expansion.
But growth alone isn’t the story.
The story is what happens inside those buildings every day.
It’s the businesses being launched.
The risks being taken.
The ideas being tested.
The relationships being formed.
And the entrepreneurs who finally find a place where growth feels possible.
For Shannon and Emiliano Lerda, Elevator started as a solution to a problem they personally experienced.
Today, it has become something much larger.
Not just a place to work.
Not just a place to store inventory.
But a place where people take the next step toward building something of their own.
And sometimes, that next step starts with a key.
