CROCS & HAVAIANAS - are they really WORTH the purchase?

If there's one craze invading the Philippine Market for footwear and fashion these days, it's about that all purpose shoes, CROCS and that stylish flip flops called HAVAIANAS. What exactly are in these footwears that a lot of Filipinos are willing to spend more than the usual for a simple "tsinelas" (thong) and rubber clogs?! According to Croc's website, "originally, Crocs™ Shoes were intended as a boating/outdoor shoe because of its slip-resistant, non-marking sole." In their history page, Crocs manufacturer stated that "despite our rapid success, we will still stand behind the core values of Crocs™ Footwear. We are committed to making a lightweight, comfortable, slip-resistant, fashionable and functional shoe, which can be produced quickly and at an affordable price to our customers." In the Philippines, we know that more than a thousand bucks is not an affordable sum. That's why, there must be more to this product for a customer to patronize it. For this reason, it's just not fair that there are a number of accidents happening around the globe associated with this shoes. I heard about the escalator accident not only once, or twice or thrice, but even more! What is so alarming is that kids are the ones involved. Thus far, the safety issue of this footwear is becoming more than serious. It's high time for the manufacturer and other trade authorities to make the necessary actions to prevent these things from happening. I wonder why safety is not mentioned in the company's core values? When in fact, this should be of prime importance for any consumer product! Why was a simple warning or a violator of some sort not printed on the product tag? It's so ironic how that essential thing was not considered by such a HUGE, global manufacturer.

Honestly, I find this product interesting. I am amazed with its functionality, beautiful colors and design. In fact, we are planning to buy an original one for our son. But I did not give in easily. There's this mother's "practical conscience" so to speak that came in and allowed me to have some second thoughts. Reasons such as most kids' feet grow increasingly fast and that the shoes' price equates that of a 2-wk supply of infant milk, kept me from buying. Until I saw in one of the sports depots near our home a pseudo version of Crocs under the brand Reva. For a cost of P199 with 6 free fun rubber pins, why not?!! If it's just for the purpose of daily home footwear, this is actually not bad at all. It might also be a trial period for our son. If he'll really like it and we'll find it useful for him, I and his dad agreed to buy him an original pair soon. Then, multi media aired these not so good product reviews. This time, more worthwhile thoughts came in. If a branded one exhibits such danger, what more the other imitations? Recently, I also read the same incident with Havaianas. A local actor's son had his own share of this traumatic escalator experience. OMG! I and my daughter own a pair of Havaianas. It only proves then, that it can happen to practically any type of footwear. So far, we're lucky we were spared of such accidents. Whenever we visit any establishments with escalators, we normally lift our kids on the first and the last few steps, better yet we carry them. Whether it's the parents' or the manufacturer's responsibility that determines the safety of our kids, it's important to have all the necessary precautions any time, every time! What's real intriguing is how cost does not guarantee safety and quality these days. Now, tell me does quality really come with a price?