About Us
We're an independent rock climbing retailer in the heart of Eryri (Snowdonia National Park). Established in 2003 and based in Llanberis, V12 has been, and always will be, run by climbers for climbers! Our aim is to provide the highest quality climbing gear and clothing from industry leading manufacturers and to offer the best possible customer service to boot. We have one of the largest in-store rock shoe selections in the world (we assume) and one of the most comprehensive selections of rock climbing equipment you can find anywhere.
Our focus is on rock climbing specific equipment: rock shoes, approach shoes, harnesses, helmets, ropes, carabiners, quickdraws, bouldering mats, trad climbing protection, belay plates, slings and the rest. We can kit you and all your friends out without disappointment; half nuts but no half measures!
Probably our biggest claim is the rock shoe selection, we have over 70 models in a big range of sizes and rarely will anyone leave without finding a shoe to do the job. Be it a super aggressive bouldering shoe to comfortable all day alpine rock boots. If you come to Llanberis, there's no need to book a slot, just rock up with plenty of time and we'll drown you in shoes and all the knowledge to get a good fit.
We pride ourselves on our staff knowledge and approachability. We are here to help, guide and develop your climbing journey and we hope that keeps you coming back! Our long standing staff team have fitted climbers with their very first rock shoes all the way up to their own trad racks and beyond. We've kitted out customers from their first mini rock boots all the way to their first 8a's.
Aside from being rock specialists we have mountaineering and winter climbing kit to get you more than started on your alpine and winter climbing journey. B3, B2, B1 boots, matching crampons; all the way through to technical ice climbing axes, walking axes, the very best from brands like Petzl, Grivel, DMM, Blue Ice and Black Diamond.
In clothing we stock a more curated range, as we're only a small shop, with limited space but what we do pick we pick because we feel the items are either high standard, great value for money and fit for purpose; mostly rock climbing. We've usually looked at most brands available and picked our stock for a good reason. A lot of the time it's just because we like it! We try to hold a range of clothes that will cover your needs in the mountains, at the crag and climbing wall. We're definitely not a technical clothing one stop shop but sometimes less is more! We have Patagonia, Arc'teryx, Mammut, E9, Black Diamond, Moon, OMM, Montane, Dewerstone, Woolpower and a few bits from Ortovox. All solid brands and great to work with. One other advantage to buying from a small independent is there's only a few staff here that buy, sell and deal with your queries so if you ever need to get in touch for whatever reason we can often answer your question right there and then without being sent through multiple departments and no hold music on the phone!
We also stock equipment for professional use too, so if you're an outdoor centre with a large staff team, climbing wall, school, Scout group or freelancer that needs new inventory we can sort you out with fast and personal service at a good price, just give us a call or email. We have accounts with most brands across the climbing, arborist and rope access industries.