Gear4music is opening its first European distribution hubs and showrooms as its looks to counteract the impact of Brexit.

The musical instrument and equipment etailer, which floated on London’s AIM last year, will launch a distribution centre and showroom in Stockholm next month. It has also signed a lease on a premise near DĂźsseldorf in Germany. 

It marks the etailer’s first physical ventures outside its home city York.

The news came as Gear4Music unveiled it had moved back into the black in its first-half. Adjusted pre-tax profits came in at ÂŁ966,000 in the six months to August 31, compared with a ÂŁ217,000 loss in the same period last year.

Sales jumped 73% to ÂŁ21.6m.

Gear4Music chief executive Andrew Wass told Retail Week the European warehouse launches were “about getting the product to people faster on a next-day basis instead of three to five days. It’s also about lowering our courier costs.” 

He added: “We are becoming much more of a European business and Brexit will matter a lot less for us.”

Gear4Music gets 36% of its revenue from European sales. In its first-half European sales jumped 169% to ÂŁ7.8m, while UK revenues rose 44% to ÂŁ13.8m.

As a result of its strong first-half results the etailer said it expects its full-year results to be ahead of previous expectations.

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