Crocs gifts free shoes to UK healthcare workers

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Apr 9, 2020

As clothing and footwear brands rush to support global efforts against Covid-19, Crocs has joined the ranks by donating thousands of shoes to the NHS.

A first donation was sent to key NHS workers last week, with additional pairs earmarked for distribution across NHS hospitals nationwide. 

In total, the footwear brand will donate over 200,000 pairs of shoes to hospitals across multiple territories, including the US, Austria, France, Germany, Netherlands and the UK.

Crocs president and CEO Andrew Rees said: "Like everyone, we've been closely monitoring the news and working hard to map out a way to most effectively help where we can. Over the past few weeks, we have spoken to healthcare workers, their facilities and even their family and friends, and they have specifically asked for our shoes in an effort to provide ease on their feet, as well as ease of mind as they need the ability to easily clean up before they go home to their families.”

The brand’s love-them-or-hate-them plastic clogs are lightweight, easy to clean and feature  a proprietary closed-cell resin which is known for its antimicrobial properties.

“The healthcare industry has always embraced Crocs, but our mantra of 'be comfortable in your own shoes' applies now more than ever, and we want to do more to help these heroes,” Rees continued. 

Crocs is also inviting customers to join the efforts by giving £10 with a purchase of Classic Clogs. For every contribution made, Crocs will send a pair of shoes directly to frontline workers.

In addition to Crocs, footwear brands including Allbirds, Sophia Webster and Kurt Geiger are making donations to support healthcare workers during the pandemic.