A husband and wife team of computer entrepreneurs are selling off the last link to the business after deciding to retire.
Now Oakmoore Court, an office building in the Worcestershire village of Hampton Lovett, near Droitwich, is on the market through Redditch-based commercial property agents John Truslove at an asking price of £299,000 plus VAT.
John and Jane Foulkes formerly ran a software business from the premises which Mrs Foulkes owns through her pension fund.
She launched the venture in her late 20s, ran it for 20 years and in the mid 1990s sold it to an American group.
Oakmoore Court on Kingswood Road was purpose built for the business in 1993.
“Both of us started our own businesses and we had a pact that the one would join the other, depending on which was the most successful. And, as it turned out, John joined my company.”
Subsequently the couple visited Canada, where they have family, intending it to be just for a year, and stayed 11 years.
But they returned to the UK about a year ago on becoming grandparents and are in the process of retiring to Devon, with Mrs Foulkes consolidating her pension arrangements by putting the For Sale signs up on Oakmoore Court.
Lying roughly mid-way between Worcester and Bromsgrove, it is a two storey building with a total internal floor area of 3,934 sq ft.
Near the A422 Droitwich to Kidderminster road, it is well located for both the M5 and M42 motorways.
Mr Truslove said: “It is a highly functional modern building in a lovely setting and represents a significant freehold opportunity.
“We believe it would make an attractive purchase particularly for someone looking to commute painlessly to work.”
The ground floor is currently divided into reception area, four private offices cum meeting rooms, one large general office area, two stores, kitchen and an air-conditioned computer room. There are seven offices, a boardroom and a kitchen on the first floor.
Hampton Lovett is a picturesque village with a history going back to before the Norman invasion.
Meanwhile Mr and Mrs Foulkes have plenty of work to do on their Listed farmhouse in Devon. “John will take the next 18 months to renovate it,” she added. “It was built in 1550, and although lovely, the beams, slate floors and more besides do need modernisation and quite a lot of tender love and care.”
