Iconic Brisbane live music venue The Zoo is set to reopen its doors under new management.
The Zoo had hosted live gigs for 32 years but closed in July after running at a loss for the past three, with its owner losing millions of dollars.
The proponents of indie venue Crowbar announced on Tuesday they will take over The Zoo, with hopes it will reopen in November, renamed Crowbar.
Crowbar's Trad Nathan said he has admired The Zoo for decades.
"I've booked it, I've played it, it's just one of those places you look to in Brisbane," he told AAP.
"Now we can help be a part of that forever."
He and partner Tyla Dombroski have signed a ten-year lease for the Fortitude Valley venue.
Crowbar opened in 2012 in Brisbane and expanded to Sydney in 2018, but its original Brisbane location closed in 2020 during the pandemic.
In July, The Zoo's Shane Chidgzey revealed he had lost $3 million running the venue since 2020.
"We don't have any chance whatsoever of getting anywhere near a profit," he told a parliamentary inquiry into Australia's live music scene.
Despite recording its best-ever ticket sales in 2023, The Zoo was constantly losing money due to higher costs and falling food and drink sales, Chidgzey said.
"People shouldn't have to get drunk to keep the music industry alive," he said.
Trad Nathan hopes his DIY and artist-friendly approach to running venues will ensure the spot's future.
"I've toured the world and sold lots of records, done lots of great stuff to understand how a music venue should and will operate," he said.
