Sport Schuster The Outdoor Retail Scene in Munich Part 1 2014/01/28
Ember Survival popped over to Munich to check out Ispo. However the
first couple of days were spent exploring the city of Munich and
surrounding areas. Bavaria has this really relaxed feel to it with
great food and fantastic public transport but it's also an outdoor
hub. This is the first in a series of posts outlining the outdoor
scene in Munich. Firstly we will look at Sport Schuster in
Munich.
Part 2 HERE
Introduction
In between sampling locally brewed wheat beer, of which Paulaner was a
particular favourite. Tasting sauerkraut and various sausages we
managed to find time to go into a couple of the outdoor shops in Munich.
First on the list was Sport Schuster.
Sport Schuster
From the outside it was like nothing we had seen before, multiple floors
covering 5000 square metres. A truly massive store. We started on the
ground floor and made our way up looking at each department as we moved
through. The shop is rather seasonal so it did concentrate on winter
sports such as skiing. It had an amazing range of boots, skis, poles and
helmets for both mountain skiing as well as speciality styles such as
nordic. Didn't see any snowboarding gear however... There is a ski
workshop for waxing and edging with a dedicated collection point. Moving
upstairs towards the hiking department revealed an impressive selection
of footwear. Sport Schuster uses an interesting display technique for
the footwear, instead of just one model on display they sometimes have
multiple pairs of the same model on show.
Outdoor Department
The mountain boots in the hiking department had some epics such as the
Sportiva Olympus Mons. Sadly no Scarpa Manta Pro or SL Active both
favourites of the Ember Survival staff. Boots could be tested on one of
the most elaborate slopes in a shop we have ever seen. Upstairs again
for climbing, mountaineering and rucksacks. Such a wide selection of
ropes, ice axes (including a retro Grivel Mont Blanc) and harnesses. The
karabiners had to have 2 stands to fit them all on! Running up the side
of the shop till the top floor is a climbing wall with a Via Ferrata
route on it too. For bushcraft there are some cracking brands on show
here, Fjällräven has a great selection for clothes as well as backpacks.
We saw almost every Thermarest mat for sale and a good selection of
stoves for camping. A knife cabinet in the camping section housed some
styles that are seen back in mainstream outdoor shops in the UK, such as
Gerber and Victorinox. Wide range of sleeping bags, tents and
gear for wild camping.
The shop caters for niche groups too, with even a yoga section!
Overall, the most equipped high street outdoor shop we had ever been in
to. The place was busy, pretty tidy, well stocked and most of the staff
spoke perfect English. We left feeling amazed that such a shop
existed, however at this point we had no idea what we would walk into
tomorrow, something that would change our idea as to what's possible in
the outdoor market...
