Ex-Display Garden Buildings: How to Get a Showroom Shed or Summerhouse for Less
A good garden building is a serious purchase. A quality shed, a summerhouse or a garden office can run well into four figures new, and the showroom models that tempt you into buying them are some of the best value stock going. If you are happy to take the building that stood on the display forecourt rather than a flat-pack in a box, an ex-display garden building can save you hundreds. Here is how to buy one well.
Why garden buildings end up ex-display
Garden centres and specialist retailers build their best sheds, summerhouses and log cabins on show so customers can walk inside and judge the size and quality for themselves. Those display buildings are weathered gently, occupy valuable forecourt space, and have to be cleared when the range changes or the season turns. That is when they are sold off, fully built, at a fraction of the price of the same building bought new and flat-packed. It is the same showroom-clearance logic behind our ex-display furniture and appliances, just scaled up to something you can stand inside.
What you can buy ex-display
- Sheds, from apex and pent storage sheds to larger workshops, in timber and metal.
- Summerhouses and corner cabins, often the best value of the lot because they cost so much new.
- Log cabins and garden rooms suitable for a home office or studio.
- Greenhouses, playhouses and storage units.
See what is in stock now on our sheds and summerhouses page, or browse the wider ex-display garden and outdoor section.
What to check before you buy
A display building has spent time outdoors, so inspect it properly:
- Timber condition. Look for splits, warping and any soft spots that suggest damp. Surface weathering is normal and usually sorts itself out with a coat of treatment.
- Roof and felt. Check the roof boards and felt for wear, as this is the first thing to fail on a neglected shed.
- Doors and windows. Open and close everything. Make sure doors hang square and any glazing or perspex is intact.
- Floor and framing. A solid floor and a square frame matter more than a few marks on the cladding.
- Treatment. Ask when it was last treated. Budget for a fresh coat of preserver once it is up, whatever the answer.
The big one: dismantling and transport
This is what separates a garden building from a chair or a table. An ex-display shed or cabin has to be taken down, moved and rebuilt, and that is a real job. Before you buy, be clear on who does it. Some sellers dismantle and deliver, some deliver only, and some expect you to collect. A large summerhouse needs a van or a trailer, a couple of pairs of hands and a few hours to rebuild on site. None of it is difficult, but it is worth planning so the saving is not eaten up by a last-minute man-and-van bill.
Prepare the base first
Whatever you buy, it needs a level, firm base ready before it arrives: paving slabs, a concrete pad or a proper plastic grid base. Getting the base down and level in advance turns rebuild day into a straightforward job rather than a scramble, and it is the single biggest thing that determines how long the building lasts.
How much can you save
Ex-display garden buildings typically come in 20 to 50 per cent below the price of the same model bought new, and because you are buying the assembled showroom piece you can see exactly what you are getting rather than trusting a picture on a box. As with everything ex-display these are one-offs, so the right building at the right price does not hang around.
Start your search
Browse the current ex-display sheds and summerhouses and the full garden and outdoor range. If you are kitting out the house as well as the garden, the ex-display kitchen guide is a good next read, and any unfamiliar terms are explained in our glossary. Buy the one off the forecourt, not the one in the box, and a proper garden building becomes a lot more affordable.
