So if you read my Vegas blog from Day 1, you will recall that I purchased a new pair of shoes from Armani. They could be paired with either jeans or a suit for Court - excellent, double duty. I wore them the next night for a total of two hours - about 45 minutes of which was spent seated at dinner. By the end of the evening, my socks resembled those of Curt Schilling in Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS. I wiped down the shoes, placed them in their shoe bag and placed them back into the box with the intention to return them.
Fast forward to today when I went back to Armani to return said shoes. As I walked in, I was greeted with a friendly smile and then, upon informing them I needed to return the shoes as they destroyed my feet, was told I would have to speak with the store manager. The store manager appeared moments later (she was the same one who told me the shoes would be the "most comfortable" I would ever wear). She informed me that the shoes, having been worn, were now considered "damaged" and "unsellable" - to which I thought, "bullshit". She told me there was no way she could permit a return. I informed her that my heels still had open wounds and I produced not only the bloody socks from the night I wore them but showed her the cuts bleeding at the moment. She said that I was putting her in an awkward position. I asked if it would be easier to explain in small claims court while paying attorneys to be there. She laughed and said, obviously, a refund would be issued to me but that she really believed that I should give them some time to send them to a cobbler for "stretching". Once I declined the stretching, she asked me to hold on a few minutes. Moments later, she returned with a credit card slip for me to sign while informing me mine was the first complaint regarding those shoes. I replied, "well, I'm sure you will be getting some more soon based on my experience". Finally, I signed the credit card return slip and was on my way.