• Forbes, Friday, November 12, 2010 11:03 AM

Understandably, Crocs vp of global marketing Ken Chaplin refers to the word "fad" as a four-letter word that's a no-no. He tells Melanie Wells that the company is rolling out new, higher-priced shoes that include flip-flops and high heels while the traditional clog -- referred to around Croc Campus as "that iconic shoe" -- has been turned into two advertising characters who give foot massages.

The iconic shoe has 95% brand awareness in the U.S., but like say ... Kim Kardashian, that doesn't mean that consumers actually understand it. "We're not plastic. We're not rubber. We're made of a proprietary closed-cell resin," Chaplin says. "That came out in our research that there is a lot of intuitive technology in our product that people aren't aware of."

As for the Croc haters out there on Facebook and all, Chaplin feels they're hating what they think the shoes represents. "Really, what's not to like about having comfortable shoes?" he asks Wells. And by the way, 150 million pairs have been sold.

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