How Retailers Can Sell Ex-Display Stock

Ex-Display for Business, part 1 of 3. A series for retailers, showrooms and small traders. Coming next: Buying ex-display stock to resell (out 13 November), and How to start a furniture resale business (out 19 November).

When a display has done its job, it becomes stock with a history. That history helps you sell it, but it isn’t a guarantee of condition. If you’re a retailer, showroom manager, manufacturer or small trader with valuable floor space tied up in displays, the aim is simple: identify what the item is, price the thing a buyer will actually receive, and record the sale clearly.

This is practical information, not legal or tax advice. The rules can turn on the facts, particularly the type of product, the buyer and the contract. Ask an accountant or solicitor about a difficult point. Legal and tax information in this guide was checked in November 2026.

Start by naming the stock properly

These labels overlap, but they aren’t interchangeable.

Call it ex-display only if it was displayed. Calling a returned appliance ex-display because that sounds gentler is asking for a dispute later. A plain label gives a buyer something useful to work with.

Has the display done its job?

Don’t let sentiment make the decision. A display has done its job when it has taught customers enough about the product to justify the space, or when the space can now do a better commercial job with a newer range, a different price point or a more useful layout.

Use this quick decision check for each display, rather than the room as a whole:

• Is the range still current, orderable and supported, or are you keeping it because replacing it feels painful?
• Can you explain what the display has taught customers, and is that benefit still greater than the value of the floor area?
• What does the floor space cost to keep? Include rent or rates allocated to the area, lighting, heating, cleaning, staff time and the sales opportunity lost to another display.
• Can the item be dismantled, moved and sold without damage that costs more than the likely sale brings in?
• Do you have the parts list, model numbers, manuals, labels and purchase or transfer records?
• Can you test it properly, describe every fault and meet any product-specific safety duties?
• Is there a realistic buyer route for this size and condition within the time you need the space back?

If the answer to the last two questions is no, the right answer may be disposal or a trade-only route, not a prettier listing. Put a value on the space before you put a value on the display.

Pick a route with its costs and risks in view

Before you choose, write down the buyer, collection deadline, payment method, delivery promise and after-sales contact. A route that looks cheap can be costly if it leaves you storing a dismantled kitchen for another month.

Price the item a buyer will receive

Start with a realistic reference, not the highest new-ticket price you can find. Compare the same model or a genuinely comparable one, then adjust for age, visible wear, missing accessories, discontinued status, warranty, assembly, delivery and the work the buyer must do. Save the reference page and the date you checked it.

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 unfair-commercial-practice rules apply to commercial practices from 6 April 2025. The CMA guidance says misleading actions and omissions can include information that creates a false impression or leaves out material information needed for an informed decision. Price presentation is part of that job.

A “was £X, now £Y” claim needs a genuine, clear comparison. Don’t invent a former price, use a short-lived inflated price as the normal reference, or compare a bare display to a complete new package without saying what is missing. If you show a recommended retail price or another reference, make clear what the reference covers and why it is relevant. If the facts aren’t clear, use a straightforward selling price instead.

Pricing worksheet

Copy this into your stock sheet. The figures below are made-up numbers for the sum, not a typical return.

Then ask whether £738 covers the stock cost and the floor space released. For a VAT-registered business, VAT treatment depends on the supply and your scheme. HMRC says a basic discount is taxed on the discounted price, and taxable turnover is the total value of taxable supplies. Record the actual consideration and ask an accountant about your invoices and scheme.

What a stock write-down means

If an item is still in stock at the accounts date but its realistic selling value has fallen, don’t invent a percentage write-down. HMRC's stock guidance accepts valuation at the lower of cost or net realisable value, and says costs of bringing inventory to its present location and condition form part of cost. Slow-moving stock can be evidence that net realisable value is lower, but HMRC says the appraisal must be realistic and reviewed item by item or by a supportable group. Use your accounting method consistently and ask an accountant how to record a particular provision or disposal.

That is a bookkeeping and tax point, not a pricing trick. A lower figure in the accounts doesn’t make a faulty item safe to sell or turn an invented “was” price into a genuine reference.

Give the buyer a condition record they can understand

Photographs should show the whole item and the bits people usually discover after delivery: backs, bases, runners, hinges, cables, labels, underside, internal fittings and every visible mark. Photograph a scratch with a ruler or other scale where size matters. Record tests rather than writing “working” from memory.

Here is a template to copy:

• Stock type: ex-display, ex-demo, end of line, surplus or customer return.
• Brand, model and range: [enter exact wording from the product label].
• Display or use history: [where displayed, approximate period if known, customer handling or demonstrations].
• Condition: [new, assembled, used, repaired or tested, with facts rather than a general grade].
• Marks and faults: [location, size, photographs and effect on use].
• Tests completed: [date, test, result and who completed it].
• Included: [list every cabinet, shelf, cable, fixing, manual, accessory and key].
• Not included: [worktop, appliances, taps, handles, delivery, fitting or anything else excluded].
• Measurements: [item, packed item and access constraints].
• Warranty: [exact evidence, term and transfer position, or “none promised”].
• Collection or delivery: [who dismantles, who loads, route, date window and damage responsibility].

Consumer law still applies to marked stock

If you sell to a consumer in the course of business, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 says goods must be of satisfactory quality, fit for a particular purpose made known to you, and as described. Satisfactory quality takes account of the type of goods, price and other relevant circumstances. The Act also allows a matter to be taken into account if it was specifically drawn to the consumer's attention before the contract, or if an examination ought to have revealed it.

That is why a clear entry such as “40mm scratch on the left door, shown in photograph 4” helps. It lets the buyer price and accept that stated issue. It doesn’t give you permission to hide a leaking pipe, call an untested appliance fully working, or describe a missing part as included.

“Sold as seen” doesn’t remove the statutory rights that apply to a consumer sale. A trader can’t contract out of the CRA's core rights and remedies. The short-term right to reject is generally 30 days, and the Act also provides repair or replacement and then price reduction or final rejection remedies in the circumstances set out in sections 19 to 24. The remedy depends on the problem and what has already happened.

Online sales need more information

For a distance sale, the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 generally give a consumer 14 days after delivery to tell you they are cancelling a goods contract, followed by a further 14 days to return the goods. You must give the required pre-contract information, including the main characteristics, your identity and address, the total price and additional delivery charges, arrangements and timing for delivery, your complaints address, cancellation information and the conditions and cost of returning goods. Send the contract confirmation on a durable medium.

There are limits and exceptions. Made-to-order or personalised goods, goods liable to deteriorate, sealed goods unsuitable for return for health or hygiene reasons once unsealed, and some other categories have different treatment. A large item can also raise a real return-cost question, so state the cost or a reasonable estimate before the consumer is bound. If a case turns on the product or contract, ask a solicitor rather than guessing.

The 14-day cancellation right is separate from the CRA rights. A mark disclosed in the listing can be accepted as part of the description, but it doesn’t turn a faulty or misdescribed item into a compliant one.

Product duties don’t disappear at clearance

Upholstery and fire labels

For relevant upholstered furniture, check the permanent label before you list it. OPSS guidance on the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, as amended by the 2025 Regulations, says the display-label requirement for new products was removed from 30 October 2025, but the permanent label remains important and second-hand supply still requires a permanent label. If the label is missing, damaged or unreadable, pause the sale and get competent advice. Don’t assume a clean cover fixes the evidence problem.

Appliances and energy information

Energy Information Regulations apply to many new regulated products, including washing machines, washer-dryers, dishwashers, ovens and refrigerating appliances. GOV.UK's energy information guidance says they don’t apply to second-hand products, but if you’re describing a new, unused surplus product, check the dealer requirements for the model and market. The same guidance notes differences between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, so check which market the product is being placed on. Where an energy label is required, the dealer must display it at the point of sale, and online listings need the relevant energy-class information and product fiche route. Keep the model number with the listing.

Electrical take-back

If you supply new electrical and electronic equipment, WEEE distributor duties may include taking back an equivalent old item free of charge. A retailer with an electrical sales area of at least 400 square metres must also offer free in-store collection of very small WEEE, unless an exemption applies. Online-only sellers and smaller businesses may use the Distributor Take Back Scheme where its conditions fit. If collected equipment becomes waste and you transport it yourself, GOV.UK says you need to register as a waste carrier. Keep the required take-back records.

Gas appliances

Don’t promise fitting of a gas appliance unless the gas work will be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer competent for that appliance. GOV.UK says anyone carrying out gas work legally must be on the Gas Safe Register, and HSE guidance says work on gas fittings must be carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer who is qualified to do the work. Put the sale and the fitting responsibility in writing.

Warranty wording needs evidence

Before you write “manufacturer warranty included”, read the actual terms for the model and route. The cover may be limited to the original purchaser, registration, domestic use, a particular country, a particular seller or a period that has already started. It may not transfer with a display item. If you can’t evidence that it applies to this buyer, say what you can support instead: for example, the date of manufacture if known, the manufacturer's service route, or that no manufacturer warranty is promised. Don’t let a sales assistant's memory become a contractual promise.

Ask the removal or fitting firm the dull questions

• Who is responsible for dismantling, labelling and photographing the parts?
• What happens if a panel, hinge or cable is damaged during removal?
• Are stairs, lifts, tight turns and long carries included in the quote?
• What vehicle, blankets, straps and protective materials will be used?
• Who loads, secures and unloads the item?
• Is the price for collection only, delivery to the door, room of choice or fitting?
• What happens if the site is inaccessible or the item doesn’t fit through the route?
• What insurance applies to damage to the display, the buyer's property and the people doing the work?
• For a kitchen or fitted unit, who checks services, walls, floors and measurements before work?
• Where do unusable parts and packaging go, and who pays for that disposal?

The one-display closing checklist

1. Classify the item accurately and decide why the display is leaving.
2. Calculate the floor-space cost and a realistic sale deadline.
3. Inspect, test and photograph every relevant surface, label and accessory.
4. Record exact model numbers, measurements, inclusions and exclusions.
5. Check fire, energy, electrical, gas and other product-specific duties.
6. Choose the route and write down its fees, collection plan and return risk.
7. Set a price using a genuine reference and explain any “was” comparison.
8. Publish the condition record, delivery terms, warranty position and required online information.
9. Take payment against an invoice or order record that matches the listing.
10. Keep the photographs, test notes, messages, delivery evidence and after-sales record.

Clearance isn’t permission to make the truth smaller. A display can be valuable stock, but only once its history, condition, cost and route are visible to the person buying it. That is how you release the space without creating a second job called sorting out the description.