UK online appliance retailer AO World said a sharp rise in sales was more than offset by investment in new markets as it posted a first half operating loss of £8.9 million.

The retailer has already launched in the Germany market and today revealed plans to expand operations into the Netherlands next spring.

Sales for the six months to end September came in at £264.3m, up almost 22 per cent on the same period last year. UK website sales were particularly robust, up 23.7 per cent to £214.8m, with total UK revenue up 14.5 per cent to £248.6m it said.

However, the firm posted a group operating loss of nearly £9m, compared to a £900,000 profit at the same time last year.

AO chief executive John Roberts said this was a result of its ongoing investment in other European markets.

"In Germany, our first international market, we are continuing to build scale and remain confident that our business model and customer proposition are working as well on mainland Europe as they have in the UK," he said.

"Our confidence means that we are now ready to move into the Netherlands, helping to leverage our German asset, and we continue to review other adjacent markets.

"Looking ahead, it is clear that the momentum we built in the second quarter has set us up well for the full year."

"We remain as confident as ever that the market dynamics are moving in our favour as a digital operator in a market where customers continue to move rapidly online and our excellent service will only accelerate this.

"Against that backdrop we are well placed to deliver sustainable long-term growth."

Scottish businessman Brian McBride is the senior independent director on the board at AO World.