The Washington Post looks at the reversed fortunes of Crocs, the footwear company that made a splash with their ubiquitous, colorful line of comfort shoes back in 2002. In light of the tough economy, the company has had to scale back considerably and is facing a September deadline to pay off debt.

“The company had expanded to meet demand, but financially pressed customers cut back. Last year the company lost $185.1 million, slashed roughly 2,000 jobs and scrambled to find money to pay down millions in debt. Now it’s stuck with a surplus of shoes, and its auditors have wondered if it can stay afloat.”

What might be most interesting about this turn of events, is the fact that the company got so many things right along the way, but failed to understand one fundamental aspect of their business, too much quality can be a bad thing. At the same time the company was ramping up its infrastructure to meet what they saw as unlimited demand, the shoe’s popularity was reaching a plateau. Which while never a great trend, shouldn’t be quite so devastating, unless your product is constructed to last. Given the lifetime of their product. not only were they losing new customers, but return customers as well.

Choosing to forgo built-in obsolescence and create a product that lasts is admirable indeed, particularly given the state of our environment and finite resources, but failing to develop an accompanying business model that understands and anticipates this shift in thinking reflects a fatal error in judgment. It’s a hard lesson to learn, but one that is worthy of noting. Sustainability and profit don’t need to be terms that are at odds with one another, but they do need to be integrated thoughtfully.