I've recently taken up rock climbing, I do mostly indoor climbing and have decided to invest in a pair of climbing shoes. Checking out some of the sites, I see that most shoes start from a minimum of 100 CHF, while I see one in Decathlon at 38 CHF ( https://www.decathlon.ch/rock-climbing-en-s8899.html ). I'm a bit hesitant to get this one because I would like to try it on to check the size.
Any suggestions for where I could get cheap (say < 50 CHF) in Switzerland? Any suggestions on what to look for in beginner climbing shoes is welcome as well
I climbed in similar 2nd-hand Decathlon climbing shoes for years and they were excellent. More expensive shoes are comfier but not worth the magnitude increase in price.
Spend the money, if you are considering bouldering as a hobby, you'll get more fun out of it if buy a decent starter shoe, go for something fairly flat and not too tiny as you feet won't be used to the shoes most of the seasoned boulderers are using. If you look at the occasion section in most sports outlets they usually have some, I bought my first pair at Transa.
Hm, I have one shoes that I can give for free, but I am from Luzern and they are 41 (my usual size is 43) and they are not exactly user friendly.
I would strongly advise against buying without trying, because shoes are very different and some you will hate and than your foot technique will get sloppy.
under the outlet part, they have shops around Switzerland and in the outlet part you can always find something around 90 chf. Or go to Decathlon. After you choose them you ca start buying them on line.
Choose something that fits as tight as possible without being (too much) uncomfortable. If some stitch, edge or whatever annoys you while trying don't buy those shoes. If your heel fits nicely it's a plus, you will have less problems with heel hooks.
btw. I know which shoes suits me, I am buying them as small as I can get them on the feet, but you can wait with this, just don't buy some in which your feet will swim around.
Actually, most of the hobbies things are expensive here, so if you really must lower your expenses to theminimum, the best is going for used equipment, check Ricardo , Tutti or on Kletterportal Marktplatz