The two phones my friend bought, which are now in Jeddah, were purchased at an Apple Store in OC. Don’t know what to tell you about your local store.
Or were his iPhones previous models bought before the iPhone 6 rollout?
I just know what Apple has said and why, which comports with problems Apple has had in previous rollouts, what they needed to do to prevent those problems, what the Apple concierge explained, and what has been reported happening around the world. iPhone 6 models in the stores are NOT unlocked. In the Apple Stores they have stacks of iPhones by carrier, not just one large unified inventory. My girlfriend's iPhone 6 64GB Gold box, purchased at the Arden Fair Sacramento CA Apple Store, specifies VERIZON on the label, under the shrink wrap, shipped as from FoxConn in China.
You can buy unlocked iPhone 5s and 4s at the brick and mortar Apple Stores. Many people who've sought unlocked iPhone 6 to take to China have been turned away.