Crocs Selects Centric Software PLM to Manage Footwear Product Development

Crocs Selects Centric Software PLM to Manage Footwear Product Development

Crocs, Inc. has chosen Centric Software, Inc., for its product lifecycle management (PLM) software.

Crocs will implement the full Centric 8 PLM suite to manage its product development process, including concept, design and sourcing. The company will implement the Centric 8 PLM system on a worldwide basis, to hundreds of users including Crocs suppliers and partners. Crocs will integrate Centric 8 with its SAP enterprise software, says Dale Bathum, Crocs’ chief product officer.

“Centric’s unique blend of product, team and execution plan makes it clearly the best choice for Crocs,” says Bathum. “Centric 8 will help Crocs speed development, and gain visibility earlier in the product development cycle to make better decisions.”

Using Centric’s PLM software to help make product “go/no-go” decisions, Crocs can determine whether to go forward with a product while still in the midst of the development cycle. Importantly, says Bathum, the company can continually re-evaluate and validate decisions based on changing cost and product inputs, gaining the ability to make go/no-go decisions as needed throughout the product development process. Results include maximizing impact on strategic business objectives and minimizing product development costs.

Crocs will implement two of Centric’s patent-pending mobile apps in the deployment: Centric 8 Collection Book for Fashion iPad and Capture It for iPhone. The Collection Book for Fashion iPad app will allow Crocs to link its footwear collections in the PLM system to corporate and retail buyers in the showroom through an interactive mobile device. The Capture It for iPhone app will let Crocs users take and upload photos directly to the Centric 8 PLM system quickly, accurately and easily, making them instantly available for review, mark-up and analysis.

“Crocs recognizes the value of Centric’s footwear development knowledge, and the value of the out-of-the-box, configurable Centric 8 PLM software that incorporates mobile applications,” says Chris Groves, president and CEO of Centric. “Centric 8’s advanced capabilities—combined with Centric’s Agile Deployment(SM) methodology—will enable Crocs to rapidly implement and advance its footwear product development methodology and improve business processes.”

Crocs, Inc. (http://www.crocs.com)
Crocs, Inc. is a world leader in innovative casual footwear for men, women and children. Crocs offers several distinct shoe collections with more than 300 four-season footwear styles. All Crocs™ shoes feature Croslite™ material, a proprietary, revolutionary technology that gives each pair of shoes the soft, comfortable, lightweight, non-marking and odor-resistant qualities that Crocs fans know and love. Crocs fans “Get Crocs Comfort Inside” every pair of shoes, from the iconic clog to new sneakers, sandals, boots and heels. Since its inception in 2002, Crocs has sold more than 200 million pairs of shoes in more than 90 countries around the world. The brand celebrated reaching $1 billion in annual sales in 2011.