Crocs said to be on last breath

Crocs, the empire behind the candy-coloured microbial foam clogs worn by toddlers, granny gardeners and Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler is gasping for life, the Washington Post reports. The company, which had a profit of US $168.2 million in fiscal 2007, reported a US$185.1 million loss last year, slashed roughly 2,000 jobs and scrambled to find money to pay down millions in debt. Now it’s stuck with a surplus of shoes and has until the end of September to repay its debt. The global growth of the company founded in 2002 based in made-in-Canada technology “mirrors the country’s tale of economic expansion and contraction,” the paper reports. Part of its downfall was the shoes’ durability: “Who needs a second pair of Crocs in a recession, particularly when the first pair is holding up just fine?” Crocs executives are hoping for a rebound in sales but industry watchers are doubtful: “The company’s toast,” said one investment fund manager. “They’re zombie-ish. They’re dead and they don’t know it.”

The Washington Post