There are good GCs, and there are bad GCs.
I have two GCs in my area. One is about 40 miles south of me, a great store. I've bought several things there and the staff has always been helpful, friendly, not pushy, just a nice bunch to do business with.
The other is about 30 miles north of me, across the state line in NY, and one of the worst shopping experiences ever. I was just there yesterday because I happened to be in the area and had an urge to check something out. The sales staff is some of the most obnoxious people you could ever meet. One of them followed me around the store with a "gonna' get him to buy something no matter what" attitude. I told her I was just looking, that I was doing a little research on an item, but that made no difference, it was "look at this, try that, check out this one, won't that one work, well are you sure you don't want this one" until I finally turned my back and walked out.
I've had the same experience in GCs I have been to in different areas of the country, from the midwest to upstate NY. It all depends on the manager and how he trains his staff.
As has been said, don't go on weekends, lunch time, or after school. Every Richie Sambora wanna-be will be there with the amps cranked up, and the drummers banging away in the other room, all in different tempos.
Jeff