Hobart’s Best Retro and Vintage

Hobart’s best retro and vintage is at The Tip Shop, as the locals call it, where classic 70’s typewriters, whole grand pianos and thousands of books (many new) can be found. You can also pick up secondhand designer clothes if you get lucky. South Hobart is a well-heeled area and the Tip Shop shows it.

It’s also known formally, as the South Hobart Tip Shop. Check the current openings hours here.

The Gigantic Lucky Dip

Currently open from Monday to Friday 8am – 4pm
and Saturday and Sunday 10am – 4pm, the Tip Shop is a gigantic lucky dip, but you are sure to find something special for a fraction of the price that you’d pay in a vintage shop or on eBay.

If you need electronics, go here, as staff test toasters, juicers, ice-cream makers and so on.  Hobart’s best vintage and retro outlet also happens to be a good place to pick up (working) gear.

Old paintings, prints and rolls of maps are near the enormous books and magazines section, and mountains of clothes sit in a rummage area, as well as handpicked items on racks.

A Group of Friends Raiding the Tip

Molly Kendall told The Hobart magazine, “We’ve been here since 1993. The group originally started as just a group of friends who were salvaging from the landfill. They saw everything being dumped. You’d bring your trailer load and pick something up at the same time. So, they started a fledgling business and it grew and grew. It’s a workers cooperative.”

There are no price tags; take your treasure to the counter and they’ll suggest a low, low price.

There is a huge indoor warehouse and a large outdoor section with wardrobes, chairs and multiple wetsuits.

Vintage China and Retro Souvenirs

On the immediate left of the counter on entrance, you will find special items set aside, from 1960s suitcases to great retro coats and shoes. Vintage china and glass and retro trays and souvenir tea-towels too.

Only a few items have stickers. But – how about second hand MacBook laptops for $150?

If you are travelling in Tasmania and need a bicycle or suitcase, look here first. If you have driven your camper van over on the Spirit of Tasmania, this is a smart place to stop once you park in Hobart, as this is where the locals bring their old holiday camping equipment.

Walk From Hobart

You can walk here from the centre of the city and take a taxi back (you’ll need it.) Try walking through Linear Park along the Hobart Rivulet and you might even see a platypus. If not that, a duck. Start from the corner of Collins Street and Molle Street in town.

The Tip Shop has Hobart’s best retro and vintage from Eighties Tasmania (Wilderness Society books and calendars from the battle to save The Franklin from being dammed) and wartime Tasmania. Old leather briefcases and brogues; postcards from the 1970s and cocktail frocks are all here.

Allow Half a Day

Allow half a day for rummaging properly. If you need lunch nearby, try The Cascade Hotel, which is a favourite local pub with outdoor seating, or the magnificent Cascade Brewery Bar with its beautiful grounds.

The Tip Shop is located at the McRobies Gully Waste Management Centre (the tip), at the end of McRobies Road in South Hobart.

The Cascade Hotel is here https://cascadehotel.com.au

And The Cascade Brewery Bar is here https://www.cascadebreweryco.com.au