// Crocs achieved record sales in 2021, with sales up 67%, and profits skyrocketing 219%
// The shoe, which has long divided shoppers, was a pandemic winner as homebound shoppers embraced its comfort
Crocs are officially back in fashion as the brand achieved record sales in 2021 when housebound shoppers embraced the comfortable shoe.
Profits skyrocketed 219% to £502.6 million ($683.1 million) over the year and sales surged 67% to £1.7 billion ($2.3 billion). The footwear brand is aiming to more than double sales to £4.4 billion ($6 billion) in five years’ time.
Crocs has long divided shoppers with some branding the foam clog ugly, while others have been won over by its comfort.
During lockdowns, homebound shoppers have snapped up the comfort shoes and it has emerged as a big pandemic winner.
Crocs chief executive Andrew Rees said: “Our fourth straight year of revenue growth was fueled by continued strong consumer demand for the Crocs brand globally. We are excited about our sustainable growth trajectory for both the Crocs and Hey Dude brands and are confident in our plan to grow to $6 billion in revenues by 2026.”
In the golden quarter, Crocs sales jumped 42.6% to £431.7 million ($586.6 million) and profits surged 147.5% to £117.7 million ($160 million).
Crocs’ appeal was global with double digit sales growth across all regions, however, demand was strongest in the Americas where sales advanced 85.9% to £1.2 billion ($1.6 billion).
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Shipping costs to hit Crocs’ margins
Despite the stellar performance, Crocs sales slowed in the first quarter of 2022.
It expects sales to grow between 13% to 16% over the quarter, although when revenues from Hey Dude – the casual footwear brand that Crocs revealed it was buying in December – are included, sales will rise between 31% to 37%. The Hey Dude transaction is due to complete this month.
However, margins will be hit on the back of a $30 million air freight cost with adjusted operating margin set to come in at 22% this year, down from 30% in 2021.
Crocs expects air freight to add an additional $75 million in the first half and forecasts that sales for the year will rise more than 20% year on year.
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