First Japan, next the world?
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The original Crocs debuted in 2002 at a Ft. Lauderdale boat show and soon popularized clogs for a new generation. What exactly made the odd shoes take off is hard to say.
Did the shoe’s core innovation stem from its unique material — a.k.a. antimicrobial resin foam — that was lightweight, comfortable, and extremely easy to clean? Or was the shoe’s breakthrough due to its distinctive, chunky hole-punched silhouette achieved via injection molding?
Whatever the reason (likely a bit of both from our perspective), it’s natural to wonder if applying the same approach to a new footwear category could yield similar market-redefining results.
The recently revealed Crocs Nova Trek technically isn’t the first sneaker design we’ve seen from Crocs. That distinction belongs to the Crocs’ Juniper Sneaker that surfaced earlier this year. But the Nova Trek is a far more explicit example of the company attempting to copy and paste its original success formula onto a sneaker.
Atmos Tokyo
Atmos Tokyo
Official details on the futuristic foam sneaker are slim at the moment. The respected Japanese streetwear retailer Atmos now has a landing page for two shoe versions, a launch date set for March 27th, 2024, and a price of approximately $110 after currency conversion.
Both neutral colorways appear to be the reverse of the other. One features a milky off-white foam outer shell, complete with Crocs’s trademark hole-punch vents, surrounding a more traditional-looking padded fabric sockliner in dark grey-green.
The other version sports a greyish-green outer foam shell with a creamy white sock liner.
Atmos Tokyo
Atmos Tokyo
Crocs hasn’t confirmed whether the Nova Trek will be available for stateside customers. Still, if the brand is finally serious about expanding into new shoe categories, we expect U.S. launch details to surface soon.
Atmos Tokyo