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I was just CHARGED for trying on a pair of shoes. UPDATE ON POST #431

3,281 756 June 22, 2007 at 12:00 PM in Chat
Okay so today I went into a running store to try on some shoes. I'm in the very BEGINNING of my search for new shoes and I just wanted to try on a few brands that were new to me and see if anything was going on with my foot. So I go into this store, the kid asks me if I'd ever been there before.. I said NO.. I said I was looking for shoes.. he says okay great and asks me to take walk in front of him for him to look at my stride/ gate. I do, it takes 2 minutes for him to determine that I'm mostly neutral/ slight overpronator. I try on TWO pairs of shoes. I tell him okay great, I'm going to look around, I might come back. I don't know. I don't know and I don't BS, its as simple as that. I might come back I might not for the shoes. I'm an informed shopper and I next to NEVER buy things on impulse. Then his attitude changed. He starts giving me this schpeel about how they're a high end running store and they take pride in fitting their customers with shoes and if I don't buy the shoes right then and there he was going to have to charge me $20 for the less than 10 minutes of time and two pairs of shoes I tried on. I asked him if he was freakin kidding me. The lady manager had to come over.. APPARENTLY, on the OTHER SIDE of the boxes of shoes he was stacking next to me was a sheet of laminated PAPER that said about this policy, in a not so very large font size. Okay so why did he NOT tell me about this when he asked me if I had ever been in the store? I clearly said no. Why did he let me walk in front of him and and spend the two minutes looking at my feet and not tell me this? I paid the $20 and left. And I know they talked about me when I left.. you could feel it in the air as I was paying. And I just know they were all like "Oh I hate when people do that.. " when in reality they should LOVE it.. $20 PURE PROFIT for under 10 minutes of time! They didn't tell me about this upfront and they stacked the shoes next to the piece of paper that said this. I couldn't even see it!
So I was thinking should I file a report with like BBB? I think $20 is a lot of money for merely trying on a pair of shoes and less than 10 minutes of time especially since I wasn't told about it upfront. I'm a girl and I've tried on my fair share of shoes in my lifetime and NEVER been charged for trying them on.

What do you guys think I should do? Nothing, something? I might just let it go.. but for right now I'm Mad

Sorry I meant to click the RANT icon not chat.. I don't know how that happened.
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Joined Jul 2006
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random.
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
Quote from Kristin :
I can't believe I haven't run out of popcorn! Popcorn
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Joined Jun 2006
L5: Journeyman
> bubble2 698 Posts
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par8hd
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
Quote from Nuala'sMom :
I did not call the OP a liar. I merely suggested that as strangers, we do not know the entire story. People post things for a variety of reasons. The OP's reaction only makes me wonder further about HER true agenda. Does she want to file a lawsuit against this guy? Bring his business to its knees, what?

Any thinking person reading this thread was free to investigate her charges. i did so. The paper claimed they knew NOTHING about it but I added that often Newspapers don't know for sure if a story is being covered until; its scheduled to run.

My angle? I am a writer. I often cover consumer affairs locally where I live. I smelled a story so I pursued it.

I DID ask the owner about the policy and he explained it to me at length. The policy exists but it is not quite as the OP portrayed it. I asked him if the woman who was charged had filed a complaint with the store and he said no, b ut that he had been the recipient of dozens of threatening calls that have frightend his family.

PhoebesMeow, you can stop this criminal harrassment of the man and his business by stating without any other snide remarks to me the following:

>>>I, PhoebesMeow respectfully ask all readers of this thread to leave this business and family alone and let me pursue my remedies via the Chicago Sun Times and via my own direct contact with the vendor. I beg you not to engage in any criminal acts on my behalf and to stop emailing and calling this guy.<<<

That's all you have to do PhoebesMeow. If you don't, people may presume that you wish them to continue. You don't want to be responsible for their acts do you? Disown them now and make sure everyone knows you don't approve. People are assuming you DO approve and are acting on your behalf with or without your knowledge. Do the right thing. Pursue this privately and then report back AFTER it is resolved. Nothing will be resolved if the guy's store is under siege.

I live in California and have written about internet bullying. This thread falls into that category. One person posts a rant, others suggest good options to resolve while some suggest harrassment. Cooler heads don't prevail and soon dozens of people are calling for harassment of the store all based on the mere allegation of some misdeed. I don't know PhoebesMeow, but I'd like to think she would never have posted here if she had known it would lead to this kind of bullying and harassment. She has the power to stop it just as easily as it started. Use that power only for good!

Power to stop it??? Are you crazy??????? If she has that kinda power -- maybe we can get her to bring our babies back from Iraq!!!!!
Writer????? BS --- You just don't have a life - whats so ever!!! Try getting one!!!!!!
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Joined Jul 2006
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random.
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
07-01-2007 at 06:56 PM.
Quote from catchinass :
I want to know what the hell they talked about for one hour. laugh out loud
Me too, seriously. Life story? Sheesh.
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Joined Jun 2006
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Original Poster
PhoebesMeow
07-01-2007 at 07:02 PM.
07-01-2007 at 07:02 PM.
Quote from catchinass :
I want to know what the hell they talked about for one hour. laugh out loud
LMAO I was wondering the same thing.. and I even thought about the times I've mentioned this to people in person.. it covered about 15 minutes, and I was personally involved in it.
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Joined Apr 2006
Follow Your Heart
> bubble2 9,329 Posts
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*JeanGrey*
07-01-2007 at 08:05 PM.
07-01-2007 at 08:05 PM.
Nualasmom is taking this WAY out of proportion.

1. This is the farking internet
2. People come here to rant
3. Phoebe never asked ANYONE to do ANYTHING
4. Even if Nualas did call the store, talk to him for an hour, etc etc., it really doesn't matter. What matters is Phoebe's perception of what happened to her because in her situation, she was the consumer and she was the one who got ripped off.
5. How is the guy's family affected? Does his website have his home number on it??? If so, he's asking for trouble.
6. I also don't believe that as many people are calling, etc as you say. It sounds ridiculous to me.
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Joined Aug 2005
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catluver
07-01-2007 at 08:13 PM.
07-01-2007 at 08:13 PM.
How did this become a post about Nualasmom? This should only be about the OP.

I agree with you, Jean.
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Joined Aug 2005
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catluver
07-01-2007 at 08:20 PM.
07-01-2007 at 08:20 PM.
Quote from KimbersTimber :
I think I am going to back out slooooooooowly..... There are too many angry women here and the topic is shoes.... Time to leave.........
laugh out loud

Funny girl!
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Joined Nov 2005
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dicksleal
07-01-2007 at 08:35 PM.
07-01-2007 at 08:35 PM.
OP didn't tell anyone to go harass the store, but she also didn't tell them to stop once she learned it was taking place. Almost seems to encourage it when you laugh about the antics being perpetrated. She knew people were doing it on her behalf. I bet if she did say outright to not do anything or to please stop, people would have complied with her wishes. So in that sense she can be seen as partly responsible for what has transpired. Even when it was brought to her attention, she refused to post anything denouncing or discouraging such behavior. Why? Doing so doesn't admit culpability ya know. Maybe out of spite for Nuala's Mom? Confused
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Joined Jul 2006
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random.
07-01-2007 at 08:53 PM.
07-01-2007 at 08:53 PM.
Quote from catluver :
laugh out loud

Funny girl!
He is not a girl.
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Joined Jun 2006
Finzz bit me!! :(
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Kristin
07-01-2007 at 09:09 PM.
07-01-2007 at 09:09 PM.
Quote from m. :
He is not a girl.
Or is he? Scratchchin
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Joined Aug 2005
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catluver
07-01-2007 at 09:14 PM.
07-01-2007 at 09:14 PM.
Quote from m. :
He is not a girl.
Sorry, I'm so out of it when it comes to the lounge.

Sadwalk
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Joined Nov 2004
Wuzzy's Best Friend
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Pro
Staff
Autumn | Staff
07-01-2007 at 10:47 PM.
07-01-2007 at 10:47 PM.
Wow...this thread has really taken off since I first read it (I think it was the day it happened)...one day when I have an hour or two I'll read through the whole thing. Seems like there are a lot of interesting views in this thread.
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Joined Feb 2006
Schizophrenic Psycho
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Melmo
07-02-2007 at 07:03 AM.
07-02-2007 at 07:03 AM.
*whew* ok wow. lots of pages.
OP, you got screwed. plain and simple. You should have been notified for the price of services ahead of time. (although you did not see a note written on the wall, no matter how stupid of a policy it is)
Personally, I don't carry around $20 on me and I'd be damned if they charged me for trying on their shoes. Personally, I would have walked out.
As to everyone else....Popcorn
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Joined Aug 2006
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jackster185
07-02-2007 at 10:52 AM.
07-02-2007 at 10:52 AM.
wow i just read through that whole thing

phoebes, im so sorry that happened to you but im glad youre taking action against it

and whoever thinks this is phoebes fault- i believe that a business' best business is word of mouth. had this not been posted on the internet, im sure people would have still found out about it. consider this: say phoebes was in a subway car telling this story to her friend. the 20 people around her all heard this story and might tell others. its the business' fault for being dumb and charging for trying on shoes. thats just plain rediculous. especially since the guy asked her if she had been there before and then did not inform her of this policy.

i still cant believe theres actually a store that does this
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Joined Dec 2006
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BostonGirl
07-02-2007 at 10:58 AM.
07-02-2007 at 10:58 AM.
I'm just wondering how much he charged for the phone call Dontknow
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