York-based online musical equipment retailer Gear4music said its revenue rose 3% to £152 million in the year to March 31, 2023, and reported EBITDA was 34% below FY22 at £7.4 million.

The firm reported a loss before tax of £400,00 compared to a profit before tax of £5 million in the prior year.

Gear4music CEO Andrew Wass said: “I am pleased to be reporting FY23 full year results that are in line with guidance provided in April, with the business generating revenues of £152m and EBITDA of £7.4m.

“Throughout what has been a challenging year, we continued to make good progress in building the technical and operational infrastructure required for our long-term success as the UKs leading retailer of musical instruments and equipment.

“A particular recent highlight has been the launch of our second-hand system, which whilst still in ‘soft launch’ stage, has traded over 1,000 products within the first three months.

“We have continued to make good progress in reducing our bank debt and to provide certainty and headroom for the medium term, we have renewed our committed borrowing facility with HSBC at £30m for a further three-years.

“Market conditions have continued to be challenging since our last update in April, and we are taking the appropriate and necessary actions to ensure our business is correctly configured, resourced and positioned strategically for long term success.

“To ensure the group can return to profitability during FY24 H2, we will focus on product margins, efficiency and overhead cost reduction ahead of revenue growth, whilst we continue to develop new growth initiatives for the longer term.”