Gear4music has posted annual revenues of £147.6m for the year ended 31 March 2022, as compared to £157.5m for the year prior which had been boosted by Covid lockdowns. Pre-tax profit came in at £5m which had fallen from £14.6m, with EBITDA at £11.2m, down from the £19.8m achieved for 2020/21.
The business had secured a new £35m rolling credit facility during the year for M&A and investment in stock and had completed its acquisition of AV Distribution, an online specialist in home cinema and hi-fi systems. The business has also acquired percussion and drums brand Premier and bass guitar aplification brand Eden. This has boosted sales of it own-brand products alongside those from major names like Fender, Roland and Yamaha.
Commenting on Gear4Music’s annual results, Julie Palmer, partner at Begbies Traynor, said: “Bored consumers trying to get through lockdowns hit the right chord with Gear4Music, as they filled furloughed days by learning a musical instrument, delivering ‘exceptional’ results last year.
“However, the online retailer of instruments and music equipment has hit an off-key note with this year’s round of figures as trading became tougher. Although they were ahead of pre-pandemic levels, sales were down considerably as we return to more normal working patterns – a decline only intensified by the cost of living crisis. When it’s a choice of paying the electricity bill or playing a new electric guitar, Gear4Music’s numbers show that consumers are tightening their belts and focusing on necessities, not luxuries.
But Glastonbury starting this week – the first time the famed music festival has been staged since 2019 – could get sales humming as people get into the swing of venturing out to live events, providing a much-needed boost for the sector and all the businesses behind it.”
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