anniversary and opened its 100th store in China. In 2017, the business opened its first store in Australia, inaugurated its Pierre Draps Chocolate Research & Development Centre in Brussels and opened its North America flagship store at Rockefeller Center in Midtown Manhattan. In 2018, Godiva opened its first café in Brussels, the birthplace of the brand. In Japan in February 2018, Godiva took out a full-page ad in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun financial newspaper, suggesting the retirement of the giri choco practice. As part of this practice, women are expected to buy chocolate for their colleagues, friends, bosses and sometimes family members on Valentine's Day. The public's reaction to the ad was generally seen as favorable. As of October 2020, the CEO of Godiva is Nurtaç Ziyal Afridi. Civic engagement Godiva is committed to sustainability practices. The company is a participating member of the World Cocoa Foundation and Cocoa Horizons Foundation and a partner of Save the Children. Godiva began The Lady Godiva Program, which partnered with FEED Projects in its first year. Godiva also partners with the Earthworm Foundation to continue their commitment to ensuring the sustainability of the cocoa industry and is in agreement with the Cocoa & Forests Initiative to stop deforestation and forest degradation concerning the production of cocoa. Godiva's sustainability efforts also impact people. With the Seeds for Progress Foundation, Godiva facilitates access to education for children living in coffee-growing communities. The Lady Godiva Initiative is Godiva's pledge to annually honor and award $25,000 grants to five non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the US, Canada, Belgium, England and China that are doing the work of empowering women. Locations In 2016, Godiva had approximately 650 retail stores throughout the world. Godiva's global presence increased rapidly, especially in such non-Western countries as China and Japan. In 2021, Godiva announced that it would close its 128 stores in North America because of decreased mall traffic sales; customers could instead purchase products through Godiva's online marketplace and through grocery, club, and retail partners. Godiva has factories in Brussels, in Reading, Pennsylvania, and in Turkey. Legal disputes Lawyers of the company have sent a series of letters warning the Lady Godiva public house in Geneva, Switzerland, that they are infringing upon their intellectual property, with the latest asking them to cease and desist from using the name. Pru Porretta, who was behind the revival of Dame Goodyver's Daye in Coventry, England,