Panic-buying at grand opening of Perth's first Costco
Perth's first Costco store has opened its doors, drawing huge crowds of shoppers hoping to stock up as coronavirus panic-buying sweeps the city.
The shopping frenzy brought queues so long, they wrapped around the entire 14,000 square metre warehouse.
The American members-only hypermarket, known for its oversized products and bulk-buy bargains, was forced to let customers in half an hour earlier than planned as the queue continued to grow.
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The shopping frenzy brought queues so long, they wrapped around the entire 14,000 square metre warehouse. 9News
Perth's first Costco store has opened its doors, drawing huge crowds of shoppers hoping to stock up as coronavirus panic-buying sweeps the city. 9News
Some keen shoppers arrived before dawn to bag a bargain.
Limits were placed on panic-buy items like toilet paper and cleaning products.
But that didn't stop some greedy shoppers from trying to cheat the system.
"Some people have already shopped, come out and gone back in to shop again," said one shopper.
"Like come on, you've got a load. Let other people have a go."
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Limits were placed on panic-buy items like toilet paper and cleaning products 9News
The toilet paper aisle was unsurprisingly popular with shoppers keen to stock up on basics they can't get in regular supermarkets.
Some customers lining up inside the shop for an hour to get their hands on toilet paper, with whole pallets stripped in seconds.
"We're literally here just to buy toilet paper, like we got a membership just to buy toilet paper," another shopper said.
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