Saks sale degenerates into footwear frenzy

NEW YORK, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- A limited-time shoe sale at New York's Saks Fifth Avenue turned into a mad dash for shoes and checkout spots before the sale expired, witnesses said.

Witnesses said the 4-hour, 60-percent sale that ended at noon Monday produced a frenzy over Oscar de la Renta and Christian Louboutin footwear, as well as people jockeying for position in line to reach the cashier before the sale ended, the New York Daily News reported.

"It was like a mob of people. People were pushing each other, getting on each other, saying, 'No, that's mine' and 'I wanted that shoe,'" said shopper Ricky Wilson, 33, of West New York, N.J.

One shopper told the Daily News the eighth-floor shoe salon resembled a zoo as patrons elbowed, budged and nudged.

Civility went out the window when the store announced the 60-percent-off sale was ending and wouldn't go past the noon deadline, one person said. After noon, shoes were discounted only 40 percent.

Security guards confirmed to the newspaper the women's shoe department was closed and cleared about 11:30 a.m. because of overcrowding.

"It was crazy," one guard said.