Vodafone sells British HQ, rents part instead amid downsizing

Vodafone Group Plc sold the headquarters it’s held for decades in Newbury, England, and will rent just over half of the site’s premises back as it downsizes and cuts costs. Iqon Capital agreed to buy the total of seven buildings known as “The Connection” on behalf of Aljazira Capital for an undisclosed figure, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

Vodafone will vacate three of the buildings, which Iqon said would be modernised as a business campus. The site consists of about 486,810 sq ft of office space set in 38 acres of grounds. The sale comes amid major upheaval for Vodafone, which has had operations in Newbury about 97 km west of London since its inception in the mid-1980s. Its share price is hovering around 25-year lows, and the board abruptly ousted CEO Nick Read in December.

Job cuts are planned as the company tries to improve operations and strike deals to consolidate in key markets, including Britain.