Founded in 2002 as a water sports shoe, Crocs has transcended its niche of comfort and functionality to become increasingly relevant in the streetwear space. Although named one of the “worst inventions” by TIME Magazine, the foam clogs have capitalized on the success of collabs to make a strong comeback in 2020.

In the early 2000’s, despite turning heads for their egregious look, crocs were idolized for their comfort. At its peak, Crocs sold 50 million pairs in a year. Yet, even a shoe positioned at the forefront of comfort was bound to see a decline for a lack of aesthetic appeal.

Nearing bankruptcy, the brand entered luxury fashion hoping to captivate a new generation of consumers. In 2017, Christopher Kane sent the first designer croc down the runway. Embellished with gemstones on a marbleized print, the Kane Croc was met with heavy skepticism but paved the way for more unexpected collabs. A year later, fuelling the highly debated question: “are crocs cool now?”, Demna Gvasalia for Balenciaga generated his own provocative take on the shoe. Released in multiple colour ways, the cartoon-esque platform clogs were a true anomaly that helped position the brand as Fashion Week worthy. Continuing the string of unlikely pairings, Crocs claimed its space in streetwear with collabs from NYC-based Alife, to LA-based Pleasures, both elevating the croc silhouette with unique iterations.

As 2020 ushered a new era of comfort in fashion, key celebrity collabs and WFH orders thrust Crocs to unseen heights. The news of the Justin Bieber crocs with drewhouse singlehandedly raised Crocs’ stock by 11%, while the Bad Bunny glow-in-the-dark pair sold out in just 16 minutes. Following a wave of successful collabs this year, The New York Times announced Crocs had “won 2020”.

With costly resale values and petitions urging for restocks, the instant sell-out rate for Crocs collabs created consumer “foam-o”.

Is it fair to say Crocs deserves the current hype?