How Post Malone, Priyanka Chopra, Balenciaga made Crocs cool – and business is booming
- Crocs is finding new fans thanks to collaborations with a range of celebrities such as US rapper Post Malone, and a number of designer brands
- The quintessential ‘ugly shoe’, the brand is now more popular than New Balance and Under Armour among US teens, according to one survey
Have Crocs really gone from faux pas to fashion-forward?
The divisive clog was included in Time magazine’s “50 Worst Inventions” list in 2010, but this hasn’t stopped high-end fashion houses such as Christopher Kane and Balenciaga from collaborating with the company based in the US state of Colorado.
“Crocs has greatly benefited from collaborations with a variety of designer brands, celebrities and retailers in recent years,” said Ayako Homma, beauty and fashion consultant at Euromonitor International, a market research provider. “The launch of limited-edition collaborations has created huge buzz for the brand and captured the attention of broad and influential audiences.”
Scottish designer Kane shook the fashion world when he unveiled high-end Crocs at his spring/summer 2017 show at London Fashion Week. The marble-printed clogs adorned with sparkling gemstones generated mixed reviews. Still, Kane went on to collaborate with Crocs for three straight seasons.
For his pre-autumn 2017 collection, Kane released tiger-print clogs embellished with an ostrich-feathered pom-pom, floral charms and the label’s signature “K” logo.