ESL lesson plan | B2 | How Crocs became cool (Again)

Summary

This ESL lesson for B2 English students explores the unexpected success story of Crocs in China. Students will analyze marketing strategies that allowed the brand to thrive in a challenging market, focusing on cultural adaptation and connecting with specific consumer segments like Gen Z.

This lesson helps intermediate students understand global marketing and consumer trends. Activities include a warm-up discussion on brands and fashion, listening comprehension based on a video, and vocabulary exercises to build relevant business and marketing terminology.

Students will also practice the Past Simple Passive to describe past events and strategies. The material is designed to generate discussion about brand identity, cultural sensitivity in marketing, and the dynamics of international business.

Access lesson

Activities

A warm-up discussion where students share their opinions on successful brands, foreign brands adapting locally, and unconventional fashion items like Crocs.
Video comprehension questions based on a video explaining how Crocs successfully adapted its marketing and products for the Chinese market and Gen Z consumers.
A vocabulary matching exercise to reinforce key terms from the video, such as "lucrative," "constrained," and "game changer."
A grammar exercise focusing on the Past Simple Passive, allowing students to practice forming and identifying passive structures in sentences related to the lesson's theme.
A vocabulary in context exercise where students use learned terms to complete sentences.
A grammar practice section requiring students to rewrite active sentences into the Past Simple Passive.
Speaking practice where students discuss brand strategies, overcoming local competition, and advising foreign brands entering new markets.

0:02 - China once promised growth.

0:04 Now, it's pushing back against America's biggest brands.

0:08 In March, Nike reported

0:10 that its quarterly sales in China

0:12 had fallen 17% from a year earlier.

0:15 While many American brands are struggling in China

0:18 hit by tough local competition

0:21 and factors like rising anti-American sentiment,

0:24 this unlikely American brand is doing quite well.

0:30 Crocs' revenue in China has grown more than 30%

0:33 during the most recent quarter,

0:35 while its North America revenue declined by around 6.5%.

0:40 The key?

0:41 Crocs has won over China's Gen Z,

0:43 one of the most lucrative and expressive consumer segments.

0:51 - Just match my vibes.

0:54 - This slogan is one reason

0:55 why Crocs has been so successful in China.

0:58 They've adapted their global slogan, Come As You Are,

1:01 to ,

1:02 which means born to be free.

1:04 That message, born to be free,

1:06 really appeals to Chinese young people

1:08 who are always looking for more opportunities

1:10 to self-express

1:12 in a fairly constrained political environment.

1:15 As a foreign brand,

1:17 understanding what matters to young Chinese consumers

1:20 and connecting with them directly on social media

1:22 has proven to be a winning strategy.

1:27 - [Jon] Another game changer has been Jibbitz.

1:29 These colorful charms

1:31 let young consumers make their Crocs their own.

1:40 - Gen Z in China are trying to negotiate

1:42 this growing cultural confidence, this new Chinese identity.

1:46 And when you give them the ability

1:48 to kind of demonstrate who they are,

1:50 their favorite passions in terms of the Jibbitz,

1:52 which are then kind of put into the shoe itself,

1:55 you know, that's a really powerful product.

2:00 - Geopolitical tensions, especially with the US,

2:03 and a weaker economy, have pushed Chinese consumers

2:06 to look beyond foreign brands.

2:10 But smart marketing has helped Crocs

2:12 shift the spotlight away from its American roots.

2:17 There are no signs that it's American,

2:19 no American symbols in the store.

2:21 Instead, what we have are local celebrity endorsers,

2:24 people like Bai Lu, a famous Chinese actress,

2:27 who isn't as well-known outside of the region.

2:31 What Bai Lu is wearing, Platform Clogs,

2:34 are one of the brand's most popular products in China.

2:39 They're seen as a fashionable

2:40 and comfortable alternative to heels.

2:43 - You know, the shape, it's kind of, I don't know,

2:44 it's kind of like a vintage style, so I like it.

2:48 - What Crocs has done is really to tap

2:50 into the new aspirations of the Chinese Gen Z

2:54 at a time when there are a lot of new Chinese designers,

2:57 Chinese creators, who are rising

2:58 to the forefront of fashion, beauty,

3:01 invent interiors across the board.

3:04 - [Jon] As a result, Crocs has been working with designers

3:07 who are plugged into what consumers are interested in,

3:10 like Chinese-born London-based Feng Chen Wang,

3:13 known for her future modern aesthetic.

3:16 Playing on Crocs' theme of customization,

3:18 Wang designed a Siren Clog with removable leather shaft,

3:21 allowing consumers to turn the shoe into a knee-high boot.

3:26 Crocs also partnered with streetwear brand Melting Sadness,

3:29 known for its eccentric bunny-themed collaborations.

3:45 - [Jon] Crocs has won over China's fashion-savvy consumers

3:48 by taking the same approach

3:49 as US food and beverage brands, like McDonald's and KFC,

3:53 and embracing local tastes.

3:55 - KFC and McDonald's,

3:57 they deeply understand the Chinese consumer,

3:59 their lifestyle priorities,

4:01 as well as what's happening in pop culture,

4:03 media and entertainment.

4:06 KFC recently partnered up

4:08 with the consumer tech brand Republic of Gamers

4:10 to come up with KFC-exclusive keycaps,

4:13 - [Consumer] K, F, C.

4:15 - [Alison] Which, you know,

4:16 you can put on your mechanical keyboards,

4:17 and it really speaks to the big, big cohort of gamers

4:21 in the Chinese market.

4:25 - [Jon] It's paying off for KFC.

4:26 They've got more than 12,000 stores in China right now

4:30 versus their roughly 4,000 outlets across the US.

4:33 Yum China, which owns KFC,

4:36 plans to open 20,000 food and beverage outlets

4:38 by the end of next year.

4:43 In China's evolving market,

4:44 the foreign brands that win aren't the loudest.

4:47 They're the ones that listen and adapt.

4:49 - The Chinese market moves at what I call China speed,

4:52 and global brands need to be able

4:54 to take a step back from that

4:56 and to really figure out which consumer trend

4:58 is worth tapping into and which ones are worth forgoing.

5:01 - [Jon] But of course, the most important target consumer

5:04 for Crocs right now is my three-year-old daughter,

5:07 whose Crocs are getting a makeover.

5:10 Hope she likes it.

Vocabulary focus

The vocabulary section introduces terms related to marketing and consumer behavior. Key terms include "struggling," "lucrative," "constrained," "game changer," "tap into," "forefront," and "paying off." Students will learn to use these terms to discuss market dynamics and brand strategies effectively.

Grammar focus

This lesson concentrates on the Past Simple Passive. Students will review its structure (was / were + past participle) and learn when to use it to describe actions where the focus is on the action or receiver, rather than the agent. This is particularly useful for discussing business outcomes and historical events without always needing to state who performed the action.

How Crocs became cool (Again)

Summary

Activities

Vocabulary focus

Grammar focus

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