Melb couple list ex-brothel, reveal wild reno that made it a home

It came with used mattresses and an “exquisite ladies” neon sign, but what this couple did next with a brothel will make them multi-millionaires.

Fitzroy’s former Club Rose brothel has been transformed into a striking family home — that still has a few nods to its past, including an “exquisite ladies” neon sign.

A Melbourne couple who turned a brothel into their home have revealed why they decided to keep a few hints of its sordid past — and the concerning things they had to remove.

Paul Ghaie and partner Lucy Wallace bought Fitzroy’s former Club Rose bordello in 2014, complete with used mattresses and spa baths, as well as some roman columns in its former VIP area.

But rather than erase the 182 Rose St property’s seedy history, the pair decided to bring in architects for a sympathetic renovation including retaining some of its very pink former paint scheme and having repairs done on a neon sign reading “exquisite ladies” that still lights up their courtyard today.

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And the update is poised to make it a multimillion-dollar address.

“We were living in an apartment two doors up at the time it was a working brothel,” Mr Ghaie said.

“But the tenant’s fled in the middle of the night … then it was up for sale.”

The property passed in at an initial auction and “just sort of sat there” until a while later when Mr Ghaie, who is a co-founder of boutique Melbourne bottle shop group Blackhearts and Sparrows, decided to have a look inside and realised it had “the bones of a really good property” if you brought a little imagination to it.

Unfortunately, the hasty departure of its former tenants meant it was still “set up ready to go” for the next day of business when the couple got the keys.

“It was a bit of an eye-opener,” he said.

“But I have spent a lot of time in Fitzroy, when it was very working class and houses with red lights were quite common in the streets. So we found an architect that was on board to have a bit of fun with it.”

The pink paint in one of the studio’s upstairs bedrooms was colour matched to the colour used in the former brothel’s entrance hall.

How the brothel’s former entry hall looked back in 2014. Image: Fieldwork Architecture.

The brothel was sold in what its current owners described as a “ready to go” state.

A renovation plotted with Fieldworks Architects’ Quino Holland delivered an effectively new, and much more sanitary home, but didn’t completely erase it’s more than decade-long stretch as a brothel.

Advertising for the former business indicates it had a “deep crimson interior”, “opulent decor” and “very private rooms”.

“So the pink that has been used in some of the rooms is the original colour from the entrance, that exact shade of pink,” Mr Ghaie said.

“The neon sign was always there, but I had to have it remade as it was broken in a few places.

“And when we have had parties, there’s been quite a few photos of men and ladies posed under the sign.”

The courtyard still has come a long way from how it looked when it was still used as a bordello.

And how the courtyard used to look shortly after the brothel operators left. Paving at the base of the stairs conceals an outdoor spa, while the rear building was for VIPs. Image: Fieldwork Architecture.

They effectively built a new studio space within the envelope of Club Rose’s old VIP building at the rear, but added a pink neon light trim from the ground floor all the way upstairs — to where some very pink bedrooms await guests.

“Really, the only parts that are original are the facade and a section of the interior wall of the main home,” Mr Ghaie said.

“We wanted it to feel like it had been there in its current state for a long time, but still have those flashes of fun through it. And for it to still be great for entertaining.”

While the courtyard is still somewhat shady, that’s mostly because of a Persian Silk Tree that provides a green canopy in summer.

Just before their plans to start building commenced an outdoor spa concealed beneath paving in the courtyard was uncovered. The cement and tiled structure was too hard to remove, so it’s still there, concealed once again but now hosting a water tank they use to keep the garden green.

The kitchen showcases plenty of curve appeal, as well as the exposed brickwork you might expect in urban Fitzroy.

The meals area is designed with entertaining in mind, including a substantial banquette seat.

And while the pair have made efforts to introduce more natural light throughout the home, it’s still a private space.

“You walk in from a street in Fitzroy, then you are transported once you close the front door — you can sit in the courtyard and have a barbecue and you don’t hear the suburb around you,” Mr Ghaie said.

“It’s still extremely private.”

Even within the home there are private spaces, including the front lounge room which can be screened off from the rest of the house as a private cocoon via a heavy set of curtain drapes that can be drawn across the entire width of the house.

The space became the couple’s covid lockdown hideaway, where they could situate themselves while their normally entertainment-centric life was on hold.

The pair said they would absolutely consider another “adventure” property, and even another brothel conversion.

The living area of the rear studio also embraces the pink decor — and neon light trims.

At the front of the home, a sitting room can be separated from the rest of the home via a large, green curtain – turning it into a cosy, private space.

“Walking in and seeing what it was would have scared a lot of people, but you have to see it as a blank canvas,” Mr Ghaie said.

Ironically, having bought one brothel he’s since had a few calls from real estate agents selling others.

“But one at a time was enough,” he said.

Close to seven years after they moved into the renovation, Mr Ghaie and Ms Wallace are selling up with plans to look for a home in a more coastal area — before the property market heats up too much more.

Nelson Alexander’s Peter Stephens is handling the sale, with expectations of a result from $2.9m-$3.1m.

Records show the couple’s renovation would have added more than $1m to the $1,292,500 paid for it in 2014.

Even the bathroom has a touch of pink to it, to continue the nods to its bawdy past.

Some parts of the home do step away from its past, including the main bedroom.

Mr Stephens said it was attracting plenty of interest with a range of buyers intrigued by its unusual decor, and its enviable location.

“It’s between George St and Gore St, so it’s right in the centre Fitzroy,” he said.

The agent added that with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and two living areas, joined by a kitchen, the main residence “feels like a real sanctuary, away from the world”.

But with a secondary studio with a kitchenette and two bedrooms upstairs at the rear of the block, there was potential for it to offer a short-stay rental space, or home office.

Especially with pedestrian access possible via a rear laneway.

The 182 Rose St, Fitzroy, home goes to auction at 2pm on June 28.

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Originally published as Melb couple list ex-brothel, reveal wild reno that made it a home