Mushroom Group puts Melbourne biscuit-factory HQ up for sale after 45 years
Mushroom Group has listed its longtime headquarters at 9 Dundas Lane in Albert Park, Melbourne, for sale after 45 years at the address. Price hopes are $6 million to $6.5 million, according to the Australian Financial Review. The listing follows the company's move to new premises on Little Collins Street in Melbourne's East End.
The Dundas Lane property is a 525 sqm freehold corner holding, meaning the land is owned outright rather than leased, with three street frontages. The building provides about 1,080 sqm of floor space. It started life as a biscuit factory before its decades in music, Billboard reported.
Music entrepreneur Michael Gudinski founded Mushroom Group in 1972. The first operations were Mushroom Records, the label arm that releases recordings, and Mushroom Music Publishing, the arm that handles songwriting rights. The business was first based in St Kilda. It shifted to Dundas Lane in 1980.
Deals were signed in that building with Kylie Minogue, Jimmy Barnes, Split Enz, Skyhooks, Archie Roach, Paul Kelly, Hunters & Collectors, Yothu Yindi, Vance Joy, The Temper Trap, Vika & Linda, Dan Sultan and The Teskey Brothers. The address served Melbourne's independent music community for almost half a century. Independent here means companies operating outside the three major label groups, Universal, Sony and Warner.
Frontier Touring, the promoter that plans and sells concert tours, is based at Dundas Lane. It is one of more than 20 businesses operating under the Mushroom Group banner. The wider group works across six entertainment service areas and has offices in Australia, New Zealand, Europe and North America. It celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023.
Chief executive Matt Gudinski, the son of founder Michael Gudinski, is leading the next phase. The relocation to a standalone warehouse-style building on Little Collins Street will bring together 160 staff currently spread across three Melbourne locations, Pollstar reported. Matt Gudinski was named Pollstar's 2026 Impact International Australia/New Zealand honoree in September. The group employed more than 250 people when he was named chief executive in 2021.
Marshall White in conjunction with Stonebridge, acting under instructions from Advise Transact, has been appointed to handle the sale of 9 Dundas Lane. No auction date or closing date for offers has been disclosed.
What makes this stand out is how much day-to-day business passed through one suburban corner. Contracts, tour plans and staff moves all ran from the former factory. For fans, this means the name continues in a new building while the old address changes hands.
