Crocs Marching to $100

Most of the skepticism about Crocs stems from the fact that they appear to be so easily ripped-off by discounters. But analysts insist that the company's unique "Croslite" closed-cell resin technology has allowed Crocs to provide a combination of foot-happiness and durability that no imitators have been able to duplicate. The formula for Croslite is a company secret along the lines of the Coca-Cola syrup recipe: Resins and dyes used in the process are bought from several different synthetics manufacturers, then mixed at a third facility under strict supervision.

Crocs executives -- who are manufacturing experts, not fashionistas -- went the trade-secret route rather than a patent to keep competitors from learning its magic mix. According to analysts, all imitations so far are heavier and less comfy, cause blisters and attract scorn from foot fetishists.

Big Footprint

When growth investors assess a company such as Crocs, they want to know the size of the opportunity. To do that, we can start with a potential market of the entire world population of 6.6 billion people, since prices are low enough, at $20 to $60, to appeal to virtually all income brackets and ages. The worldwide footwear market does around $160 billion in sales. If a single company can capture 2% of that, it's worth $3.2 billion in revenue.