move into India, the launch of the online business and the increased focus on building a global brand. Melissa Potter stepped down as CEO in September 2015. Non-executive chairman Thomas O’Neill lead the business until 2017 when Mike Shearwood was appointed as the new CEO. Then following Shearwood's resignation in June 2018, Stella David was announced as In-term CEO. In February 2019 Giorgio Presca was announced as the new CEO, Stella David returned to her role on the board. In May 2018, the company announced that it would build a new production plant next to its headquarters in Street, Somerset. The £3 million factory would see the latest in robot technology and create 80 jobs and produce over 300,000 pairs of Desert Shoes per year. In November 2020, Clarks announced a rescue plan through a £100 million investment by the Hong Kong-based private equity firm LionRock Capital after a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), a form of insolvency, in which the Clarks family will lose overall control of the company. The CVA requires the agreement of landlords, who would receive a percentage of turnover as rent, and creditors. In January 2021, Viva China Holdings has agreed to acquire 51 per cent of LionRock Capital Partners QiLe Limited, the private equity firm which will own the Clarks brand, for £51 million. The majority owner of Viva China Holdings is entrepreneur Li Ning, a former Olympic gold medal winner for China. This resulted in Victor Herrero, a Spanish executive and former CEO of Guess, being named as the new Clarks CEO in March 2021. Prior to his appointment as CEO, he served as a board member to Clarks since April 2019. Jonathan Ram was named CEO in March 2022 and took the position in April of that year. Clarks Companies North America (CCNA) The history of C&J Clark's representation in America dates back to 1950 and the formation of Clarks of England Inc. Initiated by Bronson Davis, a car salesman, who had seen the Desert Boot at the Chicago Shoe Fair in 1949. Davis established a sales organization covering 150 accounts with outlets that stocked Clarks products, predominantly Desert Boots. He also sponsored advertisements for Clarks shoes in The New Yorker and Esquire magazines. Davis established relations with some of America's most prestigious retailers; Abercrombie & Fitch, Neiman-Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue. The coverage for the Desert Boot was consolidated by advertising that