In reply to climbingnoob:
I've heard that the price of rubber has increased, but can't find a reliable source for that. Biggest problem is probably inflation against decades of wage stagnation, which has increased the relative cost of living massively. An investment crisis has led to economic stagnation, hoarding of wealth, financialisation of land and housing stock, leading to higher accommodation costs, flatlining wages, casualisation of labour, pension cuts, attacks on working conditions and growing social inequality. That's the context in which it feels harder to justify laying out for a new pair of climbing shoes...
Check back in 5 years time and we'll be trading recipes for making the best broth out of your old cheesy Scarpas... synthetic uppers will seem a real con when we're eating our shoes!
Post edited at 16:38