Owner of PC World and Curry’s Dixons Retail has said that it is to sell off its loss-making online brand Pixmania.

In a trading update, the firm said German industrial group Mutares had agreed to buy the company in a deal which will require Dixons to front Eu69 million to support Pixmania. It also announced that it would be selling its Turkish arm.

In terms of sales for the first quarter, Dixons said that the UK and Ireland had seen success despite strong comparatives, making gains in market share with like-for-like sales up 6%.

Sebastian James, chief executive, commented: “I am a passionate believer that Dixons succeeds where we offer our customers an integrated multi-channel proposition, where we are the market leader and that we do best when we stick to our knitting. So I am very pleased to be able to announce today that we have received an irrevocable offer for Pixmania. If this proceeds to completion, Pixmania would benefit from an injection of entrepreneurial vigour and with a very solid capital base would be able to deliver on the robust business plan proposed by Mutares AG.”