UKC

Hi guys, new bouldering here, been to a couple of sessions and want to invest in my own pair of shoes, just wondering where the cheapest place is to shop for them? 

Hope everyone is well?

Regards

Craig Sanders

The fit is everything, especially for climbing footwear.  So I'm afraid I have to suggest a shop, rather than the online

No worries, will do a search myself and see what I can muster up, thank you for the reply

Yes, definitely a shop - and ideally a specialist one, where staff can actually give you some advice and where there are a few different brands to try on. What part of the country are you in?

As said above you need to try shoes on as fit (and sizing) is totally valuable between models.

 Where are you based? I'm sure someone will be able to recommend a local specialist if they know your location.

Hi I'm based In Loughborough but can get anywhere around the midlands if needs be

Loughborough hope so, i want my own pair lol

I'd recommend Decathlon for a first pair of shoes. They're cheap, last ages and can climb hard grades with the right pair of feet in them!

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/rock-climbing-id_8230651.html

no stock left pal, will nip in and ask them myself thanks for the help

Yes, but where does he get the right pair of feet in them from??

A very quick web search suggests there's a shop at The Climbing Station in Loughborough - I can't comment from personal experience but would have thought that might be your best bet? They claim to stock at least three well-known brands of shoe.

There's also a Go Outdoors, apparently, but you're unlikely to get any advice there as the staff aren't usually climbers

Go try a few pairs on at your local climbing gym and maybe take a trip to Rock On in Birmingham: http://www.rockonclimbing.co.uk/equipment.html#rock_shoes

Then you will have a general comparison of fit, sizing and price between brands and can take a look online and at Go Outdoors.

https://www.absolute-snow.co.uk/S/Rock_Climbing_Equipment/Climbing_Shoes(10...

And Cotswold/ Snow & Rock are worth a glance as they do clearance deals.

I recently did as suggested above, I went to my local climbing shop in MK and tried on many different varieties. The staff were great and even had me trying on shoes out of my budget range just to find a suitable shoe, sadly with the stock they had in I didn't find a pair. I did leave however better armed with the knowledge of how a shoe should fit.

I visited Go Outdoors and purchased some ClimbX shoes for £38, I'm not yet convinced I got exactly the right size but time will tell. The MK shop had very limited stock so I went to the Nottingham branch when visiting family where they had loads out on the shop floor allowing me to try as many on as I liked.

Ideally I would have liked to support the local shop, hopefully next time when I have a larger budget.

Good luck!