Do cleats help with riding ????

Find a better bike shop...

Specialized shoes tend to be wide using an American form last. Same for Giro, so the Concept Store may well be a great shout.

If you've got wide feet make sure you buy shoes that are wide. I didn't and mine hurt.

Cleats help massively. If you drive your feet forwards from the 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock position, pull them back (think of scraping dog muck off your shoe) from the 4 o'clock to 7 o'clock position, then just 'unweight' the pedal on the upstroke*, you will naturally apply pressure on the downstroke anyway. All combined together, this produces a much more fluid pedalling style, smoother riding and higher speed.

Quite frankly, I'd steer clear of anywhere that suggested they just kept your feet in position. Given your location, you could do a lot worse than paying a visit to the specialized concept store. They'll position the cleats for you as well, which is a skill in itself.

*I believe the latest thinking is that actually pulling up on the upstroke carries a risk of knee issues.

Cleats help because it allows you to keep more power applied to the pedals through more of the rotation , allowing you change from pushing on the down part to pulling on the up lift.

Also when your quads are a little fatigued, you can apply more pull effort with your hamstrings.