With the ink barely dry on the shareholder vote regarding its new slate of directors, ValueVision Media, parent of ShopHQ, has named Mark Bozek as CEO, replacing Keith Stewart, who had served in that role since 2009.
ValueVision had been under pressure from activist shareholder the Clinton Group since November to oust Stewart and set the home shopping channel on a new course. That came to a head at ValueVision’s annual shareholders’ meeting June 18, when four of Clinton Group’s proposed six nominees for the board were voted in – FreemantleMedia North America CEO Thom Beers, Bozek, former HSN chief operating officer Bob Rosenblatt and former QVC senior vice president of marketing Fred Siegel. Rosenblatt was also named non-executive chairman of ValueVision. A fifth Clinton nominee – former Saks Fifth Avenue President Ronald Frasch, was appointed as a director following Stewart’s resignation.
ValueVision said independent inspector of elections IVS Associates had certified the voting results at the June 18 meeting. Joining the Clinton Group nominees are former Time Warner Cable COO Landel Hobbs, former MIVA chief financial officer Lowell Robinson and Medica non-executive chairman John Buck.
Bozek has more than 20 years of senior executive experience in the multi-channel commerce, electronic retailing and entertainment industries, including having served as CEO of HSN, Inc., senior vice president of QVC, Inc., and as a producer at Fox Television.
"I am thrilled to join the team at ShopHQ and humbled by the opportunity to work with a talented Board and dedicated employees,” Bozek said in a statement. “ValueVision has great assets and our vision of all that comes next is ambitious; we plan to evolve the business, creating more robust platforms that enable us to become a far more relevant player in the multi-channel worlds of TV, online and mobile commerce and entertainment.”
Clinton Group had big plans for ShopHQ – as part of its proposal it had planned to shift the shopping channel’s product mix to include celebrity-based proprietary fare and to establish a merchandising presence in New York City.
In his statement, Bozek cited ShopHQ’s tremendous potential, adding that he will “work tirelessly in the coming months to develop a comprehensive strategic plan for growth -- one that includes employees, our loyal customers, as well as our valued product and brand creators -- enabling ValueVision to create long-term shareholder value.”
In securing a majority of board seats, Clinton Group has eliminated any initial doubts that its agenda will be implemented. In addition to Stewart’s resignation, chairman of the board Randy Ronning and former directors Specific Media/MySpace EVP Jill Botway, former EVP of software company Witness Systems William Evans, and former Maxum Petroleum CFO Sean Orr did not receive sufficient shareholder votes for re-election.
In his statement, Buck thanked the former directors for their contributions to ValueVision. “We wish them all good things in their future endeavors,” he said.
