Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate.

Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate.

      Richard A. Brooks/AFP via Getty Images

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      Two decades ago, Ford infamously mortgaged nearly all its assets as part of then-CEO Alan Mulally’s strategy to revamp its struggling finances. Was this an indication of failure and desperation? Certainly, but it turned out to be foresighted, as less than two years later, competing automakers General Motors and Chrysler approached the federal government seeking bailouts.

      Just three years later, under the now-disgraced ex-CEO Carlos Ghosn, Nissan was constructing the 22-story headquarters in Yokohama, which has housed the company for over 15 years. According to Automotive News, it may now be up for sale. This time, it's not one of America's "Big Three," but a Japanese manufacturer. Along with Toyota and Honda, Nissan has been one of the top producers on its side of the Pacific for decades.

      Nissan’s headquarters is the creation of Ghosn. He announced the headquarters relocation two years before Ford's extensive restructuring initiative, and like Mulally, he was initially brought in to lead a corporate turnaround. Before his arrival, Nissan was grappling with $20 billion in debt and primarily unprofitable products in Japan. Ghosn’s rise began with Renault's initial investment in 1999, when he became COO. By 2001, his title changed from COO to CEO.

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      Ghosn, who famously escaped Japan in what resembled a large roadie trunk, continues to assert that Japan’s prosecution (or, as he puts it, persecution) is driven by a need to blame an outsider and prevent a French takeover of the troubled automaker—an issue that may seem trivial given Nissan's current financial struggles.

      With history often repeating itself, it feels strangely poetic that the new CEO, Ivan Espinosa, seems ready to sell the very building where the company is headquartered in exchange for a cash inflow that could exceed $650 million. Selling properties alone won't eliminate Nissan's debt, but it may relieve some pressure from the company’s overwhelming operating expenses. In the last quarter of its 2024 fiscal year, Nissan reported a loss of $4.5 billion—its second-largest decline in the past quarter-century.

      An assessment of liquidatable assets has placed Nissan’s headquarters on the financial analysts' radar, and it’s not the only asset under consideration. According to AN, the company is looking at three domestic factories for potential closure, and downsizing operations at its Tochigi assembly and testing facility has not been dismissed. The Drive has reached out to Nissan for a comment regarding this report and will provide updates with any new information we receive.

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Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate. Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate. Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate.

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Selling the headquarters that Ghosn developed would demonstrate that no expense is too sacred to eliminate.

At Nissan, everything is on the table as new management is said to be considering significant actions to remain viable, including the potential sale of the company's Japan headquarters, which was constructed in 2009.