New owner to savour former Melbourne Skipping Girl Vinegar Company warehouse after $707,000 auction

The empty former Melbourne Vinegar Company warehouse premises in Northcote has been sold for $707,000 by jewellery designer Tessa Blazey.

Historical photos courtesy of the Darebin Historical Society

It was constructed in the 1920s as SK Dixon flour business, which morphed into the Melbourne Vinegar Company and from 1958 was owned by Skipping Girl Vinegar, representing an authentic piece of Melbourne's history, according to the Darebin Historical Encyclopedia.

Shayne Mooney at Nelson Alexander marketed the property as in the heart of Ruckers Hill.

“The huge warehouse shell presents the ultimate blank canvas on which to create a residential masterpiece,” he says.

It last sold at $318,000 in 2004.

Buyers’ advocate Paul Osborne, from Secret Agent, observed there were five bidders at the auction.

It is a large open warehouse shell behind its facade.

While totalling only 150 square metres internally, the internal space could be used to create three floors. Live Load architectural practice partners Quinton Duffy and Julia Lehmann prepared a possible concept for implementation. The plans must be commenced by November 2012 to ensure compliance with the council approval timetable.

Its most recent taxable land value was $377,000 in early 2012.