In Almaty there is a special place called Baraholka bazar. The name comes from the Russian word “jumble” because in Soviet times there was planned economy instead of a free market economy. Moreover, that planned economy was poorly managed and deficit of daily goods was part of life. So people went to certain places to find and purchase necessary items. On top of that in 1991 the Union collapsed and the economy was changed to market one. So it is said to be the starting point of capitalist economy and market relations.
These days Baraholka is a sprawling collection of markets. This is the cheapest place to shop in Almaty. One can see disorder and chaos over there. As a rule, the lion's share of goods arrive from China. Altho local, Turkish, Russian, Indian goods are available as well.