Buy it now

continued

But timing is everything: the very next day, those digital tags read $79.99 and $89.99.

When a customer asked what had happened, an employee said the company sends price changes by satellite, automatically updating the electronic labels. The instant increase was a sharp move on Kohl’s part, since that same day the store ended a week of giving out bonus credits and began a short period for redeeming them. According to the employee, the shoe department also has quick-change digital badges. So far, most other items in the store still carry printed price tags—at more securely marked-down prices.   

[Originally published in March, 2009.]