Melbourne languishing behind Geelong in hipster league

IT’S enough to make a barista’s beard curl in total shock. Don’t choke on your chia-seed porridge, but Melbourne is languishing behind in the national hipster league, and trailing behind some of the unlikeliest of cities.

DON’T choke on your chia-seed porridge, Melbourne — but our quinoa credits and latte licenses are in doubt after a survey named Geelong as Victoria’s hipster haven.

With statistics to make a barista’s beard curl in total shock, the survey also found the Gold Coast is Australia’s No.1 hipster city, with Melbourne trailing in fifth place, one spot behind Geelong.

Cairns and Hobart ranked second and third respectively.

The hipster city index compared population density, per 100,000 people, to trendy-living indicators like vegan eateries, coffee shops, record stores, tattoo studios and vintage boutiques.

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The matcha latte at Long Story Short Cafe in Port Melbourne is picture (and hipster) perfect.

The study, commissioned by US-based global relocation company MoveHub, which tracks the world’s desirable places to live, compared 446 cities in 20 countries.

With 140 coffee shops and 13 inking spots per 100,000 people, the Gold Coast took out the top spot for hipsterdom.

Cairns and Hobart followed, but Geelong, with seven vegan restaurants, 247 coffee shops and 13 tattoo parlours, rated highly.

“As the two most densely populated Australian cities ... Melbourne and Sydney are simply too big to ooze the niche hipster cool, that the study ... demands,” the research found.

“Despite having a reputation as Australia’s best foodie hub, Melbourne is let down by a surprisingly low number of vegan eats.”

However, Melbourne had a high density of vintage boutique stores and record shops.

The study added: “Because hipsters have such specific tastes like tattoos and artisan coffee and prefer less bustling city locations, we can map them around Australia quite accurately. You would struggle to find any other group that changes cities at the rate that hipsters do.

“Once a city has been chosen as a trendy area, hipsters bring in all sorts of new independent businesses. This injection of consumers can really transform cities.”

Daniel Letizi, 28 and Harry H, 23 from Beefs Barbers in Richmond. Picture: Jason Edwards

At Beef’s Barbers, an inner-city haircut hang-out, Daniel Letizi, 28, Harry H, 23 (seated), and big dog Beef, yesterday ruminated on Melbourne’s faded hipster status.

“Our clientele isn’t hipster,” Harry said. “I would describe it more as a bunch of chill dudes.

“I’m not sure what hipster means any more, anyway. I think people should be whatever they want.”

The world’s top three hipster cities, according to the study, are England’s Brighton and Hove, and Portland and Salt Lake City in the US.

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