World’s Best Shoemakers III: La Sportiva

World’s Best Shoemakers III: La Sportiva

Like all things, Climbing has evolved. Shoes have evolved. As they’ve gotten smaller and more precise, standards have risen. This trend continues as innovation and increasingly difficult routes feed on each other. There are now quite a few major brands of climbing shoes that are available worldwide, each with it’s own unique qualities and advantages. We’re not talking about Nike; these shoes are designed by climbers and made by climbers, often in a single facility consisting of maybe 200 people. Sometimes it’s important to know what companies your business is supporting, so here is a review, plus a little background, on one of the best shoemakers in the world, La Sportiva

La Sportiva

Though they’ve only been making rock climbing shoes since the 80’s, La Sportiva is a family-owned company over 80 years in the making. Owned by the Delladio’s, the Italian shoe company has come a long way since the 1920’s when Narciso Delladio made his hand-crafted wooden clogs and leather boots for lumber-jacks and farmers. The company could now be considered a corporation, with facilities worldwide. Despite their size, they keep it real. At its place of origin La Sportiva now supports 140 families in a small mountain town at the foot of the Dolomites, a unique and enviable environment. Being family run and surrounded by mountains every day allows them to draw on eight decades of experience handed down through the generations. Their rich knowledge of shoe making, combined with a focus on new technologies, ideas and innovation, allows La Sportiva to come out with some of the most amazing products on the market. Their deepest pool of knowledge is understandably alpine focused, but their understanding and skill carries over into the realm of technical rock climbing.

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