Retail news round-up on March 29, 2016: Notonthehighstreet seeks capital funding, BHS close to cashing in on Oxford Street flagship deal, and bad weather hits Easter trade

BHS eyes sale of Oxford Street flagship lease

Ailing BHS is on the verge of securing £55m by offloading the lease on its Oxford Street flagship to the landlord, Abu Dhabi’s ruling family, the Sunday Times reported.

The troubled department store chain is thought to be closing in on a deal with Lancer Property Asset Management, which oversees the interests of the Middle Eastern royals.

Meanwhile, the state-backed Pension Protection Fund (PPF) is poised to take a stake of at least 33% in BHS as the retailer faces a complex battle to restructure its retirement scheme and secure its survival.

Notonthehighstreet looks to raise £25m to fund expansion

Etailer Notonthehighstreet is seeking to raise fresh capital from new investors in a bid to accelerate its expansion.

The online marketplace is in talks with several new investors about a possible cash injection of as much as £25m into the business by offloading new shares, Sky News reported.

The names of investors are unclear.

Easter shopping hit by wet and windy weather

The number of visits to UK shopping centres and high streets plunged 6% and 10.5% on Saturday and Monday respectively, compared with last Easter.

Good Friday shopper numbers were 9.2% higher than last year.

Easter trade suffered as shoppers chose to stay indoors and avoid the wet and windy weather, according to Springboard.

Shopping centre footfall dived 16% on Monday morning, the Springboard shopping centre index showed.

“Easter Monday is usually the best day for high street retailers because people have finished all their DIY,” said Springboard analyst Diane Wehrle.

“However, as Storm Katie swept in, it seems shoppers have chosen to stay at home rather than venturing out into the wind and rain.”

Amazon aims to start two-hour delivery service in Berlin

Etailer Amazon is reportedly considering rolling out a two-hour delivery service in the German capital.

The online retail giant is understood to have ordered a site on Berlin's Kurfuerstendamm to be repurposed as a warehouse for more than 10,000 articles from its assortment, Welt newspaper reported, citing Berlin transport sources.

The etailer is to begin deliveries in May and would at first be carried out by courier firms already active in Berlin, the newspaper said.

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