Are they serious?!

I received a pair of havaianas slops for Christmas but they were the wrong size. Yesterday, I went to exchange them for the correct size and that's when I was experienced Havaianas South Africa in all its glory. I was told they would not exchange the slops without a receipt...even though they were a gift and generally people do not include the receipt with a gift (OF COURSE)! The slops still had the tag on AND the specific store sticker and they still would not do anything for me. I was then told that if I did not have a receipt I could bring a print out of the person's bank card statement with which they were purchased (SERIOUSLY!?), they would send it to head office in Cape Town and only then might I be fortunate enough to be able to exchange the slops. Head office was more than useless when I contacted them and to make matters worse, the assistant was very smug about telling me their policy...a real power trip for her. This is the most ridiculous exchange policy I have ever heard of and I'm not even sure if it fits in with the Consumer Protection Act. Are they telling me that Havaianas South Africa NEVER exchanges gift items?? Unbelievable.