Tim Lacroix went to the Sudbury Sears store three weeks ago and tried on a fall jacket that cost $89.99.
But because he had just spent $350 on winter clothes for his kids, he couldn't afford to buy it just then, and decided to come back after his next pay. He did just that on Tuesday.
With Sears in liquidation as it plans to shut down its 74 remaining department stores and eight home stores across the country, there were signs up saying clothing was marked down 20 per cent.
But Lacroix was shocked when he realized a price tag sticker for $199.99 had been placed on top of the jacket's original $89.99 tag. Needless to say, he left the store without buying the jacket.
“It's hard enough to want to go there, knowing what they're doing to their employees,” he said.
“But I said, you know what, when money's tight, money's tight. Let's see if we can get a deal. But so much for that …
“I was really disappointed, and it kind of hit me, now they're just trying to rip us off. That's the first thing that comes to mind. We're being taken again by a big corporation. They liquidate everything, but they mark it all up first.”
Lacroix, who posted his experience on social media, is not the first person in the country to complain of this phenomenon, with national media writing stories about the same thing happening at other Sears stores.
Vincent Power, a spokesperson for Sears Canada, denies that the retailer's products are being marked up as part of liquidation.
“We just would not play that kind of game, and neither would the liquidator,” he said. “We're not out to make money that way.”
Power had the price tag for the jacket Lacroix wanted to buy examined, and said it turns out the item was originally priced incorrectly.
“The store took a shortcut and just put the new price on top of the old one instead of replacing the ticket,” he said.
There are other situations where items may have been marked up some time ago, before the liquidation sale started, as the retailer entered a new season, Power said.
He said Sears would offer Lacroix the jacket at the $89.99 price, plus the discount offered through the liquidation sale.
Anyone who encounters a similar situation will also be given a discount off the lower price, Power said.
