I am not sure that I have ever seen a type of shoe which has caused quite as much division as Crocs, and now they are potentially facing a backlash owing to their ability, or lack thereof, to properly take on a set of escalators. this new claim about Crocs has come on the back of quite a large amount of debate around the rubber shoes, which are a firm favorite amongst the aged, those with bunions and those who like to garden. 

There is of course a very serious issue which Crocs may need to bear in mind when it comes to their beloved shoes and the brand in general, let’s take a look. 

One Moment 

Something which we have spoken about on here repeatedly is the danger of a viral moment for businesses and the very real possibility that one innocuous moment could set their brand back years. In the case of Crocs the idea that they are difficult to wear when using an escalator may seem rather daft and perhaps even a touch spurious, but mark my words that it will only take moment to seal their fate. One elderly man getting injured on an escalator and Crocs can expect to see sales plummet and their brand tarnished. 

Mentioned 

Now bad things can happen at bad times with any product, but the very fact that this notion of Crocs vs escalators has already been mentioned means that if it does happen, they were already aware of it and failed to take action. The public can just about forgive a mistake, but gross negligence? Now that is something which will certainly not sit easily with the Croc buying public. 

Division 

If something happened to a beloved brand then there may be a way in which that company could spin it in a way which avoided making the situation catastrophic. In the case of Crocs however, they are very much a marmite brand and to show evidence of that, under the search term ‘crocs’ on Google, ‘ihatecrocs.com‘ is the 4th most search for. Quite why people have so much to loathe about these oversized rubber slip-ons is wildly beyond me, but I am in no denial that there is a big base of Croc haters. 

To further reinforce the outrage surrounding these shoes, there is actually a website which documents people who have already had accidents using these shoes, and there is even a hospital in Sweden which has banned their use, despite doctors and nurses around the world relying on them to keep their feet in good shape after pounding the wards for days at a time. 

One thing is for damn sure and that is that if Crocs want to keep up appearances they need to ensure that accidents are kept to a minimum, and they may even wish to go down the self-deprecating marketing route to remain relevant, and possibly even become a cult classic.