Crocs are one of the few products to survive supply chain chaos
Comfy “ugly” shoe brandCrocs has managed to avoid Covid supply chain issues because of one simple fact, according to the clog’s CEO Andrew Rees during a breakdown of the brand’s blockbuster last quarter – they’re simple to construct.
Crocs are made up of three parts that can be easily assembled, so when the brand’s manufacturing lines closed in Vietnam during pandemic lockdowns, the company was able to easily move to another location and keep Crocs coming off the production line.
A number of retailers including Nike and Lululemon, also with factories in Vietnam, have struggled after pandemic shutdowns this year. Retailers have been caught out not only by manufacturing slowdowns but longer delivery times, more expensive transportation costs and now port delays, due to staffing issues.
“One thing that we learnt from Covid I think is really important to people to understand: our shoes are really simple, and so ramping up factories could be very, very quick,” Mr Rees said during the company’s third-quarter 2021 earnings call.
Crocs’ sales increased by 73 per cent in the last quarter, to $626m, up from $362m in the same period in 2020.
Although Vietnam factories are now back up and running, Crocs has spread its pandemic manufacturing risk – the brand now also makes shoes in China, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Indonesia. The company plans to avoid the recent container issues for 2022 too, by transporting goods by air in spring and summer.
Crocs has bridged the gap between the basic and luxury markets, becoming the pandemic’s “it” shoe. Crocs were featured in fashion week, at the Oscars, and were worn by everyone from Helen Mirren and Kendall Jenner to Bad Bunny, Nicki Manaj, Post Malone and Drew Barrymore, among countless others during the pandemic.
Recent Crocs collaborations include those with Christopher Kane, Liberty London and Justin Bieber.
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