Crocs (CROX 4.01%) is donating 10,000 pairs of shoes a day to healthcare workers in the U.S. "on the frontlines on the battle against COVID-19," the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. It will even pay for shipping.
Demand has been high and the footwear company quickly met its daily limit after the promotion began, but it opens up the queue again each day at noon. It thanks Shoe Carnival, Famous Footwear, and Rack Room Shoes for allowing it to make the donations.
Image source: Crocs.
Wearing out the shoe leather
Crocs has not defined who constitutes a healthcare worker, and it has received requests from people working in jobs tangential to the industry, such as pharmacies and offices, but the company asks that consumers "use their best judgment and only request their free pair if they are involved in an area of caregiver work where their job puts them at risk of coming into contact with or directly fighting the COVID-19 virus."
Although Crocs says it is evaluating the situation with healthcare workers in other countries, the offer is currently limited to those in the U.S.
Crocs have always been a popular shoe with those in the medical community for their comfort and durability. It wants to offer shoes to workers in the current crisis that are easy to remove and clean.
Crocs set up a special website that puts healthcare workers in a queue to fill out a form. Some have tweeted they waited in the line for several hours before being advised Crocs had reached its limit for the day. The company asks you to come back the following day to try and qualify if you don't make it to the front of the line.
