MUMBAI: US-based premium footwear brand Crocs has said it will double its exclusive stores in India this year and also plans to enter into licencing agreements for accessories, which it will be launching shortly.

The Nasdaq-listed company, which entered the domestic market in 2007 under a joint venture with Chogori Footwear, also said it is looking to increase its presence in the multi-brand outlets with an eye to tap the small town market.

"Right now we have 21 stores. We should have about 40 stores by the year end," Crocs Vice-President for India, Middle East and Africa Florent Andre Bailly said here.

The USD 1-billion footwear maker is also present in around 250 large format, multi-brand stores in the country, including Metro, Lifestyle and Planet Sports.

He, however, declined to divulge investment plans, but said new stores will be mainly in metros and the firm would strengthen distribution network to focus on smaller markets.

"Most of our retail stores will be in big cities. But when we get into distributor level, we will be opening in tier II and III cities too," he said, adding the company already has stores in Ludhiana and Jalandhar.

It plans to have a distributor in each state. "There is tremendous potential for growth. We have probably grown very fast during the first five years. We have been doubling year on year. We probably will slow down a little bit to get to the next phase. I think this is the market where you can very easily get 25-30 per cent growth a year if your product and distribution are good," Bailly said.

The company, which recently announced plans to enter into a licencing agreement to extend beyond footwear in India, is in talks with domestic players to launch accessories under the Crocs brand name.