Three arsonists on the run after fireworks used to torch Melbourne store

Three arsonists are on the run after using fireworks to torch a store in inner Melbourne convenience store.

Police said a group of unknown, masked offenders smashed the front windows of the store on Wellington Street in Collingwood with sledgehammers about 3am.

The attackers allegedly then threw fireworks inside the venue, before they fled the scene, police said.

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The owner, who did not want to be identified, told 9News he only sold tobacco products made in Australia, and said his shop, which had only opened three weeks ago, was predominately a grocery store for locals.

He said he doesn't know why his shop was targeted, and said it could be a case of mistaken identity.

Nothing was stolen from the family-run business, which sits directly across from another new tobacconist.

The attack lasted only a minute before the offenders sped off in a dark-coloured ute heading north on Wellington Street.

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No one was inside the venue at the time.

"It was all pretty exciting," witness Mark Coles Smith told 9News.

"I said, 'Guys, I'm trying to sleep, can you just like tone it down a little?' and they said, 'Mind your own business, mate'."

Police said the fire wasn't thought to be linked to the ongoing tobacco war that's left more than 30 shops torched since March, as disputes involving Middle Eastern crime groups escalate.

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Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential crime report online.