How Crocs and Claire’s became ‘cool’ again

What do Crocs and Claire’s have in common? Both companies made significant comebacks in recent years after hitting a low point financially and culturally in the late 2010s.

“When you Googled Claire’s, the only thing that came up was a bankruptcy,” Kristin Patrick, chief marketing officer for accessory and jewelry brand Claire’s, said during a session at the National Retail Federation’s annual Big Show conference. “Skip to two and a half years later, and we were one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies.”

Crocs CMO Heidi Cooley told a similar story: As recently as 2016, she said, the slipper-shoe brand was mostly known as the punchline in online memes. Now it’s become a cultural phenomenon all over again, with rising sales and a number of high-profile corporate and celebrity partnerships under its belt.

Customer insight: What’s behind these brand revivals? Both executives pointed to strategic shifts that emphasized allowing customer feedback, particularly from Gen Z, to guide decisions.

“They have to lead the way,” Patrick said. “Marketing today is very much about letting them lead, and the brand taking the [back seat].”

In concrete terms, she explained, that has meant sourcing ideas from customers about what Claire’s should sell and where it should operate. This has led the company to expand beyond its traditional operating channels, opening in locations ranging from Galeries Lafayette in Paris to Walmart to metaverse-based games such as Roblox.

“It’s about showing up where they are spending their time,” Patrick added.

Crocs is similarly tapping its customers for ideas. For example, it recently developed an adult shoe based on the Lightning McQueen character from Pixar’s Cars in response to an online petition.

“A lot of brands would have seen that and been like, ‘oh, that’s cute,’” Cooley said. “We saw it. We engaged, and I will tell you we have dropped that shoe five times now. It sells out every single time.”

Need for speed: However, as the recent Claire’s and Crocs comebacks show, nothing is static in retail, and new trends are already reshaping the industry. Both execs stressed that in 2024, their companies are focused on aligning with trends quickly, which is something younger generations are demanding.