Augustus Gelatery opening in Albury in former Blackline Music store on Dean Street

Augustus Gelatery is set to welcome customers from Friday, October 6, with the fit-out of its Dean Street premises nearing completion.

Owner Kevin Cortesao, whose wife hails from Albury, said the response to the store had exceeded his expectations with more than 200 job applications received in the first 48 hours they went live.

About 25 staff will be employed by the business.

"We're starting to do all the hiring now and we've had a great response. What I love about it is all the young kids applying," he said.

"It gives them something to work towards and it's a really good family environment, which is why I think it works so well.

"It's getting harder and harder for young people to get jobs because places like Woolies are becoming more automated, but this will never be automated."

The business, which was founded in Pascoe Vale in Melbourne's northern suburbs in 2016, offers 36 flavours of gelato, as well as a wide range of sorbets and plant-based desserts.

Mr Cortesao said milkshakes, frozen cakes and the recent addition of cookie pies had also proven a hit.

"It's all made fresh weekly and it's a really good product. We have a place in Coburg North that makes it and it's shipped out to us," he said.

"My wife is from Albury and her parents are born and bred here and are still here. We spend half of our time here and half in Melbourne, so it works incredibly well.

"We've always wanted to come here because it's a huge area and a great opportunity. Now with summer coming, I think it will be great."

The 180-square metre site, next to Downtown Pizzeria, was home to Blackline Music until March 2022 and will be among the largest in Augustus Gelatery's network of more than 30 stores, which includes other regional centres such as Shepparton and Mildura.

A shop in Bendigo is also expected to open this year.

"It's a massive site and we're putting booths inside, which is the first time we've really ventured into that," he said.

"It can be a place to hang out as well, you're not just grabbing gelato and going out on the street. It makes it a bit more of a destination."

The introduction of Augustus Gelatery is part of a wider rejuvenation of that particular section of Dean Street, with the former Three Legged Dog building to open as a nightclub by the end of September, while plans are in place to transform the store previously occupied by Radio Rentals into a bar.

"I think once people see it filling up, it will really make a difference and then it becomes a big destination and other bigger businesses will want to come in and be part of it," Mr Cortesao said.

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