The business, located in Peterborough and founded in 2009 by chief executive Cameron Knowles, sells over 2,000 product lines including its own label clothing alongside brand names.

Kick Sport will use the funding to develop its UK market and key overseas markets, according to a statement.

Richard Bucknell, fund principal of the Catapult Growth Fund, says, ‘Martial arts participation is still fairly modest in the UK, with circa 4,000 clubs, and has significant scope to grow, when compared to countries in Europe and beyond.

‘The company is looking to replicate the success of other specialist pastime and sports retailers who have used the web to provide tangible benefits to sports enthusiasts,’ he adds.

Some 80 per cent of the retailer’s sales currently come via the web, while over a quarter of revenues originate from overseas.

Kick Sport is also planning to extend its range of own brand leisure clothing and accessories.

The Catapult Growth Fund is a £30 million venture capital fund established in 2007 to provide capital for expanding businesses.

The fund’s investors include the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and local authority pension funds.