"The effort was around being able to communicate clearly to our customer in gift denominations they commonly think within," said Tom Aiello, Kmart's spokesman. "Nothing against the ".99."
Last weekend, tables at Forever 21 in New York's Times Square had clothes with prices that ended with "50 cents" -- for example, "$10.50 and up" or "$17.50 and up." Steve Martin, a 27-year-old resident of Scranton, Pa. who was shopping there, said people aren't fooled by fractional prices.
"I think most people are rounder-uppers," said Martin, who's looking for a job.
But if the price is right, shoppers will scoop up items. Twenty-somethings Malia and Kyra Bennett were out at Lloyd Center Mall in Portland, Ore., recently when they spotted workout shirts at H&M for $5 that they had to buy. "We didn't come to buy those, but they are only $5," Malia Bennett said.
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Candice Choi in New York and Sarah Skidmore in Portland contributed to this story.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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