the art of rocha

Few collaborations balance delicacy and disruption quite like Simone Rocha x Crocs. The fourth chapter in their ongoing partnership arrives this October, ushering in a vision that merges the Irish designer’s romantic craftsmanship with Crocs’ playful functionality. Centered around an entirely new silhouette, the Ballerina Platform, the collection blurs the boundaries between couture fantasy and everyday utility — a language Simone Rocha has long mastered.

First seen glimmering down the runway at London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2026, the collaboration felt like a continuation of Rocha’s fascination with duality: strength and fragility, toughness and tenderness, rubber and ribbon.

a ballet of materials

At the heart of this collection lies the Simone Rocha x Crocs Ballerina Platform, a shoe that reimagines Crocs’ functional DNA through the prism of romantic theatre. Embossed bows sweep around the heel and sole, forming a ribbon-like tread pattern that feels more like lace than plastic. The sculpted platform base lends stature while preserving Crocs’ characteristic comfort, merging orthopaedic practicality with high-fashion posture.

Around the ankle, a delicate adjustable strap grounds the otherwise fantastical design — functional enough for movement, graceful enough for eveningwear. Sparkling gemstone garlands wrap the upper strap and heel cup, catching the light with every step, evoking Rocha’s signature play of translucence and shimmer.

The shoe’s construction signals a bold technical evolution for Crocs: a brand-new mould developed exclusively for this collaboration. The result is both sculpture and shoe — at once sturdy and poetic.

romance in rebellion

For Simone Rocha, romance is rarely sweet; it’s subversive. Her fashion universe thrives on contradictions — pearls with PVC, combat boots with lace dresses, innocence with defiance. The Ballerina Platform fits seamlessly into this narrative, transforming Crocs’ democratic shape into a vessel for rebellion wrapped in beauty.

The embossed bows serve as emblems of Rocha’s recurring motifs, familiar to anyone who has followed her collections since her debut in 2010. Yet here, they take on a surreal new form, turned into industrial etchings within the EVA foam, as if engraving femininity onto functionality itself.

It’s this tension — between the precious and the practical — that gives the collaboration its emotional charge. The shoe is wearable yet theatrical, ironic yet sincere, and above all, unmistakably Simone Rocha.

the supporting cast

While the Ballerina Platform claims the spotlight, Rocha’s fourth Crocs collection revisits two earlier successes: the Classic Platform Clog and the Trailbreak Sneaker.

The Classic Platform Clog returns in Pink Rose and Black, refined with pearl-like embellishments and miniature crystal studs. What was once the simplest shoe in the world becomes a piece of romantic armour — soft, strong, and shimmering. Its elevation on a slight platform sole extends the body’s line, echoing the grace of pointe shoes, yet retains the easy wearability that defines Crocs’ global appeal.

The Trailbreak Sneaker, meanwhile, embraces contrast. Rendered in Black and Oyster, its rugged, performance-driven design is softened by Rocha’s crystalline detailing. The result is footwear that fuses the sensibility of a hiking boot with the fragility of a tiara — a hallmark of Rocha’s aesthetic where fragility is never weakness but strength in disguise.

from runway to real life

When Rocha unveiled the collection during London Fashion Week, the shoes didn’t merely accessorize the garments — they completed them. Models walked on mirrored floors that reflected light through the gems and straps, amplifying the visual dialogue between movement and reflection. The runway’s soundscape, composed of gentle strings and distant mechanical hums, mirrored this duality — the organic and synthetic in perpetual harmony.

Now, as the collection transitions from the stage to the street, the Ballerina Platform leads the charge. Its release on October 30, 2025, through the Crocs App, signals a new chapter in the brand’s evolution — one that positions Crocs not just as a comfort icon but as a fashion force capable of haute reinterpretation.

a study in transformation

Simone Rocha’s collaborations with Crocs have always served as laboratories for exploring her broader ideas about modern femininity. From the first release in 2021, featuring pearl-dotted clogs, to last year’s crystal-laden Trailbreaks, Rocha has consistently challenged perceptions of what constitutes beauty, craftsmanship, and even seriousness in fashion.

The Ballerina Platform feels like a culmination — the most complete embodiment yet of her hybrid world. It takes the humblest material and transforms it through narrative. Every embossed bow and gemstone speaks of craftsmanship, yet the shoe remains accessible — democratic luxury in the truest sense.

This philosophy aligns perfectly with Crocs’ recent trajectory. Once a symbol of comfort over style, the brand has, through collaborations with Salehe Bembury, Balenciaga, and now Simone Rocha, rewritten its legacy. Together, Rocha and Crocs prove that innovation isn’t about rejecting the ordinary — it’s about reimagining it.

the poetry of practicality

At its core, the collaboration champions the beauty of practicality. The Ballerina Platform’s moulded form offers ergonomic support, while its ribbons and embellishments create an illusion of fragility. Rocha’s design transforms everyday function into choreography: the movement of light across gemstones, the rhythm of footsteps echoing through sculpted rubber.

In this balance, the collection redefines what footwear can express. It’s no longer just about utility or aesthetics — it’s about emotion through design. Each detail, from the wraparound bows to the gemstone-studded straps, acts as a verse in Rocha’s ongoing poem about femininity, memory, and resilience.

beyond

As Simone Rocha and Crocs enter their fourth creative dialogue, the project has evolved beyond mere partnership — it’s a conversation about transformation itself. For Crocs, it’s an artistic leap; for Rocha, a cultural experiment in accessibility.

The Ballerina Platform is, in many ways, a mirror of its maker: structured yet soft, functional yet romantic, resistant to easy definition. It embodies the contemporary spirit of design where beauty need not sacrifice comfort, and playfulness need not diminish sophistication.

The collection’s release also underscores how the fashion landscape continues to democratize — where collaborations once seen as novelty now operate as vehicles for genuine innovation.

impression

The Simone Rocha x Crocs Ballerina Platform captures the rare alchemy that occurs when practicality meets imagination. It’s not a shoe trying to be something else; it’s a Croc transformed by poetry, adorned by craftsmanship, elevated by narrative.

Launching this month, the collection reminds us that beauty can emerge from the unexpected, that function and fantasy can coexist, and that true design — in Rocha’s world — is an act of empathy.

With its ribbons, gems, and sculpted grace, the Ballerina Platform doesn’t just redefine Crocs; it redefines what it means to walk beautifully.

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