The scenes at Cranbourne’s newly opened Panda Mart this week have been nothing short of chaotic. Picture this: a 200-meter queue stretching to the main road, frustrated shoppers yelling at each other, and staff eventually forced to close the store’s doors. The whole situation reads like a Black Friday horror story, except this isn’t even a sale - it’s just Thursday in suburban Melbourne.

The store, essentially a physical manifestation of online marketplaces like Temu, promises rock-bottom prices on everything from kitchen gadgets to party supplies. But watching the mayhem unfold, I’m struck by a deeper concern about our society’s relationship with consumption and value.