Payless Shoesource

I visited here last night as I have a few times before (with excellent experiences) looking for an inexpensive pair of sneakers. This particular store consistently offers variety and a generous selection of shoes and sneakers at moderate prices and I always appreciate the ability to view and try on stock for your size without the usual salesperson hovering and pouncing on you when entering a store. When I entered, I appreciated a very nice salesperson’s reminder of a sale on tagged items. With this sale in mind, I went to my size’s rack and picked out a pair of «Champion» sneakers (the «Champion» box they were in was marked with a reduced sale-​tag at $ 34.99).
Here is when things turned ugly: When I got to the register and the very nice salesperson rang them up, the sneakers were not on sale and the price became $ 39.99. With a credit card in hand and without any protest from me, the salesperson and the (presumed) manager went to great lengths to bring me back to the rack and show me how a mistake in marking the box occurred… and that I will be charged the extra five dollars. Frankly, I could care less about paying an extra $ 5 for something I want, but the progression in which this occurred and the acted-​out expressions and body language used to explain the error was, at the least, suspect (you really had to be there)… so, I decided to pass up on the purchase. When the very nice salesperson saw that I was leaving without making the purchase, she decided to offer them to me at the mistaken price. Why didn’t the (presumed) manager offer that? Was she overriding the manager? Why wait until I’ve obviously decided not to make the purchase? Was I being victimized by design or was this a simple mistake that went too far? I’d rather presume the latter, but I’d rather detail my encounter and alert others to the possibilities. I’m not usually so sensitive but, in this case, I politely walked out… still needing sneakers (which I’ll find elsewhere), saddened by this visit (which I’ll get over)… and disappointed by the staff.