EsFootwear manufacturer Crocs has shifted its main U.S. distribution center to Dayton, OH from Ontario, CA to cut costs and increase delivery flexibility, according to local press reports. The move comes as Crocs sales have continued to surge, with Panjiva’s analysis of S&P Global Market Intelligence data showing North American revenues increased by 35.2% year over year in 3Q.
Panjiva data shows U.S. seaborne imports associated with the firm only increased by 2.7% year over year in the third quarter, suggesting part of the sales growth came from inventory as the firm shifted its distribution center operations.
There’s been a surge of 165.0% in October, suggesting expectations of further growth and a rebuild of stocks as the firm moves into the Dayton facility.
Cost control is becoming increasingly important for the apparel sector as it faces the challenge from increasing U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports, as outlined in Panjiva’s research of Nov. 8. Crocs has already started responding to the threat of tariffs, with imports from China down 28.4% year over year in the third quarter to represent 26.7% of the total in the past 12 months. In replacement it has scaled up shipments from Vietnam by 33.5% in 3Q to reach 66.5% of the total.
Source: Panjiva
