Under Clay’s leadership, Charlotte-based Carolina Pad shifted its focus from manufacturing notebooks and other school supplies to designing them. The company was the first to add fashion to school and office products, a move that led to significant growth over the past eight years. Clay also expanded operations internationally, opening offices in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Clay’s career began in 1979 with Deloitte Haskins and Sells. Before joining Carolina Pad, Clay and his father owned and operated the Pretty Paper Stationery Company in Cherryville, North Carolina. He purchased the company in 1987 and sold it in 1994 to Thomas Nelson Publishers in Nashville, Tennessee. Clay then joined Thomas Nelson’s gift division as senior vice president. He joined Carolina Pad in 2000.

He has a Bachelor of Science in accounting from the University of South Carolina and an MBA from Wake Forest University’s Babcock Graduate School of Management.

Clay currently serves on the boards of Conbraco Industries and Classroom Central, a free store for teachers in Charlotte.