It is believed that buyers are already on the radar, and the strategy is to sell the three clubs as a package. Obviously if that is not achieved, the clubs will be closed down.
The Melbourne-based parent company Hi-Fi Group went into voluntary administration last week after a dispute with a creditor which, according to a statement, “could not be resolved. The creditor as a result put the business into voluntary administration. However, it’s business as usual in all three venues.”
It is not known when the dispute began or how big the debt was, but it is understood that the creditor was not a bank or a financial institution.
The administrators have retained James Power, one of the group’s bookers alongside Brad Pearce, to ensure that bookings and gigs continue to flow smoothly. Bookings for the three clubs run up to June/July. Among the acts scheduled to play there are 360, Seth Sentry, The Haunted, A$AP Ferg, The B-By World Champions, Psycroptic & Goatwhore, Northeast Party House and The Beards.
The Hi-Fi Bar began on Melbourne’s Swanston Street almost 20 years ago, with the 650-capacity room soon establishing itself as a significant venue hosting top names including a secret gig by Prince.
In 2009, the Group bought the site of the Pavilion in Brisbane’s West End and set it up there as a 1,500-capacity room. Three years after that, the Forum in Sydney became the third link on the east coast for the Hi-Fi Group, with a capacity of 1,400.
A creditor’s meeting is held in Melbourne on Tuesday February 24.
