The turnaround story is certainly compelling on the surface. After its clunky-but-comfortable shoes were all the rage in 2007, by 2009 the prospect of bankruptcy loomed large for footwear name Crocs (NASDAQ: CROX). The company managed to hang on until 2013 when a partnership with a private equity firm provided some much-needed cash. But the funky footwear name was never able to restore its previous glory.
That is, until 2018. Under the leadership of Andrew Rees, who was named CEO in 2017 after joining the company in 2014, Crocs has created an incredible resurgence. The next year was the best year ever for the company in terms of revenue, and 2019's numbers topped the prior year's records. The company successfully made ugly colored foam clogs cool again.
And there's the rub, so to speak. Ugly was "in" back in 2007 too, but only long enough for one round's worth of fashion statement. The fad had little staying power because fashion novelty is alarmingly short-lived.
Source Fool.com